Tar River leans Republican by roughly 16 points: about 42% of voters vote Democratic and 58% Republican.
About 97% of adults in Tar River typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Tar River, ~41% vote Democratic, ~56% Republican, and ~3% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Tar River compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Tar River leans more Republican than 27 of 48 neighbors.
Tar River runs about 13 points more Republican than North Carolina as a whole.
Why Tar River 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 Tar River, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many family households vote Republican. About 75% of households in Tar River are family households, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 67%.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Tar River, NC sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Tar River looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. About 98% of adults in Tar River have completed high school, about 10 points above the North Carolina average of 88%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Wilton, NC R+31
- Stem, NC R+32
- Shoofly, NC R+45
- Creedmoor, NC R+9
- Fairport, NC R+38
- Dickerson, NC R+19
- Culbreth, NC R+56
- Butner, NC D+4
- Oxford, NC D+10
- Grissom, NC R+27
Cities with Similar Populations
- Biggsville, IL R+39
- Durango, IA R+35
- Richtex, SC D+16
- Broom Hill, IN R+53
- Big Creek, MS R+52
- Geeville, MS R+72
- Greenville, UT R+75
- Amanda Park, WA D+21
- Geuda Springs, KS R+62
- Thatcher, UT R+78
All Local Stats
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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.