Wayne County is a Republican stronghold. About 22% of voters here vote Democratic and 78% Republican.
About 73% of adults in Wayne County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Wayne County, ~16% vote Democratic, ~57% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Wayne County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Wayne County leans more Republican than 9 of 15 neighbors.
Wayne County runs about 43 points more Republican than Iowa as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Wayne County. The south side is the most Republican-leaning (R+63) and the north side is the least Republican-leaning (R+52), a spread of about 11 points.
Why Wayne 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 Wayne County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with a high white share and below-average college attainment vote Republican. In Wayne County, about 94% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 22 points above the U.S. average of 72%; about 17% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, about 7 points below the Iowa average of 24%.
Population density and Republican lean
Places with low population density tend to lean Republican; Wayne County, IA sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Wayne County looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 82% of households in Wayne County own their home, about 7 points above the U.S. average of 75%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Lucas County, IA R+44
- Appanoose County, IA R+43
- Putnam County, MO R+68
- Mercer County, MO R+70
- Decatur County, IA R+44
- Monroe County, IA R+43
- Clarke County, IA R+41
- Sullivan County, MO R+56
- Schuyler County, MO R+67
- Marion County, IA R+34
Counties with Similar Populations
- Wilkin County, MN R+39
- Dallas County, AR R+18
- Fulton County, KY R+41
- Howard County, NE R+64
- Rio Blanco County, CO R+46
- Moore County, TN R+69
- Norman County, MN R+27
- Surry County, VA D+2
- Wolfe County, KY R+57
- Randolph County, GA D+3
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Iowa 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.