Wheeler is a Republican stronghold. About 17% of voters here vote Democratic and 83% Republican.
About 56% of adults in Wheeler typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Wheeler, ~9% vote Democratic, ~47% Republican, and ~44% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Wheeler compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Wheeler leans more Republican than 56 of 91 neighbors.
Wheeler runs about 25 points more Republican than West Virginia as a whole.
Why Wheeler 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 Wheeler, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with a high white share and below-average college attainment vote Republican. In Wheeler, more than 99% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 28 points above the U.S. average of 72%; about 12% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, about 5 points below the West Virginia average of 17%. Rural areas vote Republican, and Wheeler sits in the bottom quarter on density (about 2%, below 96% of cities).
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Wheeler, WV sits in the bottom 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 Wheeler looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Wheeler is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 41%, about 11 points below the West Virginia average of 52%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 26% of adults in Wheeler report food insecurity, above 91% of cities. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 80% of adults in Wheeler have completed high school, below 91% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Cleveland, WV R+67
- Hacker Valley, WV R+67
- Replete, WV R+64
- Guardian, WV R+66
- Wildcat, WV R+61
- Kanawha Head, WV R+68
- Pickens, WV R+67
- Chapman, WV R+66
Cities with Similar Populations
- Stonington, MI R+31
- Nenzel, NE R+84
- Fritchton, IN R+61
- Lopeno, TX R+3
- Lockhart, MN R+38
- Rasselas, PA R+50
- Minor Beach, MI R+23
- Minto, AK D+17
- Hockley, VA R+44
- Pailo, TN R+76
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from West Virginia 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.