Seward leans heavily Republican by roughly 46 points: about 27% of voters vote Democratic and 73% Republican.
About 89% of adults in Seward typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Seward, ~24% vote Democratic, ~65% Republican, and ~11% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Seward compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Seward leans more Republican than 62 of 69 neighbors.
Seward runs about 57 points more Republican than Illinois as a whole. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Seward is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Seward 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 Seward, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Seward votes against the grain of Illinois. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Seward runs about 57 points more Republican. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 75% of households in Seward are family households, above 76% of cities.
Never-married share, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine a low never-married share and a rural land-use pattern tend to turn out at a higher rate, as Seward, IL does.
Why turnout in Seward looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. More than 99% of adults in Seward have completed high school, about 8 points above the Illinois average of 92%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Egan, IL R+41
- Pecatonica, IL R+34
- Myrtle, IL R+35
- Winnebago, IL R+32
- German Valley, IL R+45
- Ridott, IL R+44
- Leaf River, IL R+39
- Byron, IL R+26
Cities with Similar Populations
- Fordville, ND R+52
- Ducktrap, ME D+17
- Meador, WV R+73
- Ingrams Mill, MS R+70
- Schenley, PA R+54
- Jerseytown, PA R+51
- Lake Wazeecha, WI R+26
- Howell, UT R+79
- Sudbury, VT R+20
- Reeder, ND R+62
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Illinois 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.