Wood County leans heavily Republican by roughly 40 points: about 30% of voters vote Democratic and 70% Republican.
About 72% of adults in Wood County typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Wood County, ~22% vote Democratic, ~51% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Wood County compares
Among counties within 50 miles, Wood County leans more Republican than 2 of 17 neighbors.
Politically, Wood County sits close to the rest of West Virginia.
Politics vary noticeably by city within Wood County. The southeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+55) and the northwest side is the least Republican-leaning (R+30), a spread of about 25 points.
Why Wood 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 Wood County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Wood County votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 56%, far above the West Virginia average of 12%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Wood County, WV sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Wood County looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Wood 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 55%, below 70% of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Counties
- Washington County, OH R+42
- Wirt County, WV R+65
- Pleasants County, WV R+59
- Ritchie County, WV R+68
- Meigs County, OH R+58
- Morgan County, OH R+55
- Athens County, OH D+8
- Jackson County, WV R+57
- Noble County, OH R+55
- Tyler County, WV R+61
Counties with Similar Populations
- Orangeburg County, SC D+28
- Cascade County, MT R+25
- Chemung County, NY R+14
- Glynn County, GA R+14
- Crawford County, PA R+39
- Buchanan County, MO R+23
- Orange County, TX R+59
- Rockingham County, VA R+40
- Jefferson County, WI R+21
- Howard County, IN R+30
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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.