Spades is a Republican stronghold. About 19% of voters here vote Democratic and 81% Republican.
About 87% of adults in Spades typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Spades, ~16% vote Democratic, ~71% Republican, and ~13% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Spades compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Spades leans more Republican than 34 of 78 neighbors.
Spades runs about 42 points more Republican than Indiana as a whole.
Why Spades 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 Spades, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 91% of residents in Spades drive to work alone, about 17 points above the U.S. average of 74%.
Homeownership and voter turnout
Places with homeowner-heavy households tend to turn out at a higher rate; Spades, IN sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Spades looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 95% of households in Spades own their home, about 14 points above the Indiana average of 82%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 97% of adults in Spades have completed high school, above 90% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Penntown, IN R+62
- Sunman, IN R+61
- Morris, IN R+63
- Negangards Corner, IN R+59
- Batesville, IN R+51
- Cross Roads, IN R+57
- Old Milan, IN R+57
- Milan, IN R+61
- Oldenburg, IN R+59
- St. Leon, IN R+65
Cities with Similar Populations
- Stoner, CO R+22
- Oak, NE R+63
- Lutzville, PA R+58
- Lacy, SD R+63
- Swanton, CA D+54
- Kim, CO R+58
- Buckhorn, CA D+6
- Welchs Creek, KY R+73
- Feesburg, OH R+66
- Ficklin, IL R+63
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Indiana Secretary of State, 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.