Upper Poplar is a Republican stronghold. About 13% of voters here vote Democratic and 87% Republican.
About 78% of adults in Upper Poplar typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Upper Poplar, ~10% vote Democratic, ~68% Republican, and ~22% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Upper Poplar compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Upper Poplar leans more Republican than 56 of 57 neighbors.
Upper Poplar runs about 71 points more Republican than North Carolina as a whole.
Why Upper Poplar 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 Upper Poplar, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 5% of residents in Upper Poplar live in densely developed areas, about 22 points below the North Carolina average of 27%.
Walkability and Republican lean
Places with a low walkability score tend to lean Republican; Upper Poplar, NC sits in the bottom tenth 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 Upper Poplar looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Upper Poplar is in the top quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 62%, above 55% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Relief, NC R+67
- Lillydale, TN R+64
- Huntdale, NC R+51
- Rock Creek, TN R+64
- Unaka Springs, TN R+69
- Erwin, TN R+54
- Lewisburg, NC R+44
- Unicoi, TN R+59
- Green Mountain, NC R+52
Cities with Similar Populations
- Rockyhock, NC R+51
- Farlin, IA R+46
- Hemlock, OH R+61
- Norton, VT R+27
- Mound Station, IL R+62
- Mount Zion, WI R+31
- Meinert, MO R+73
- Standard, CA R+26
- Hedge City, MO R+73
- Ironville, NY R+37
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.