Vilas County leans Republican by roughly 18 points: about 41% of voters vote Democratic and 59% Republican.
About 83% of adults in Vilas County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Vilas County, ~34% vote Democratic, ~49% Republican, and ~17% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Vilas County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Vilas County leans more Republican than 2 of 7 neighbors.
Vilas County runs about 17 points more Republican than Wisconsin as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Vilas County. The west side runs the most Democratic (D+28) and the northeast side runs the most Republican (R+33), a spread of about 61 points.
Why Vilas County leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per county to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Vilas County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Rural areas vote Republican. About 8% of residents in Vilas County live in densely developed areas, about 16 points below the Wisconsin average of 24%.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Vilas County, WI sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in Vilas County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Vilas County 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 68%, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 84% of households in Vilas County own their home, above 93% of counties. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 97% of adults in Vilas County have completed high school, above 98% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Oneida County, WI R+18
- Gogebic County, MI R+14
- Iron County, WI R+27
- Forest County, WI R+33
- Iron County, MI R+24
- Price County, WI R+36
- Lincoln County, WI R+29
- Ontonagon County, MI R+26
- Langlade County, WI R+35
- Florence County, WI R+41
Counties with Similar Populations
- Crawford County, MO R+61
- Hopewell City, VA D+23
- Clarke County, AL R+14
- St. Francis County, AR D+18
- Hampshire County, WV R+62
- Poinsett County, AR R+56
- New Kent County, VA R+28
- Ray County, MO R+53
- Osceola County, MI R+46
- Tattnall County, GA R+43
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Wisconsin Elections Commission, 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.