Sawmills is a Republican stronghold. About 25% of voters here vote Democratic and 75% Republican.
About 79% of adults in Sawmills typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Sawmills, ~20% vote Democratic, ~59% Republican, and ~21% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Sawmills compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Sawmills leans more Republican than 19 of 53 neighbors.
Sawmills runs about 48 points more Republican than North Carolina as a whole.
Why Sawmills leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per city to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Sawmills, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Sawmills votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 49%, well above the North Carolina average of 27%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Sawmills sits in the bottom quarter (about 12%, below 89% of cities).
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Sawmills, NC sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Sawmills looks the way it does
Turnout in Sawmills sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Rutherford College, NC R+49
- Hudson, NC R+52
- Granite Falls, NC R+53
- Cajahs Mountain, NC R+53
- Rhodhiss, NC R+50
- Connelly Springs, NC R+55
- Gamewell, NC R+48
- Lenoir, NC R+40
- Hildebran, NC R+53
- Valdese, NC R+43
Cities with Similar Populations
- Fox River Grove, IL D+3
- Shillington, PA R+3
- Lee, MA D+32
- Wilmer, TX D+15
- Hart, MI R+26
- Lincoln, MA D+43
- Carver, MN R+11
- Centerport, NY D+4
- Rainier, WA R+26
- Murfreesboro, NC D+31
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from North Carolina State Board of Elections, distributed by the Voting and Election Science Team. Demographic inputs come from the U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-year estimates and the 2020 Decennial Census). Health and environmental inputs come from the CDC (PLACES and the Environmental Justice Index). Land cover comes from the USGS and EPA. Election-day and lead-up weather come from PRISM 4km daily grids and the NOAA Global Historical Climatology Network. Mail-voting and election-administration patterns come from the MIT Election Lab's Survey of the Performance of American Elections. Block-group crime detail comes from CrimeGrade. Internet data and modeling support provided by ISPreports.org.
Modeling and analysis by the BestNeighborhood data science team. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.