Smithfield, NC is a small town in Johnston County that has a long history of political engagement and involvement. The citizens of Smithfield take great pride in their local elections and work hard to ensure that their voices are heard. Every two years, the citizens of Smithfield have the opportunity to elect representatives who will represent them in the state legislature. As with many small towns, local politics in Smithfield can be quite contentious but it is an important part of the democratic process and allows for residents to have their say on issues that affect them every day. The mayor of Smithfield is elected at-large while each district within the town is represented by two council members, who are also elected by the residents. In addition to these representatives, there are various committees such as the Planning & Zoning Board, which address specific issues related to development and growth in Smithfield. Every four years, residents also have the opportunity to vote for their presidential candidate during a presidential election. Overall, politics in Smithfield provide an avenue through which citizens can express their opinions and shape their community.
The political climate in Smithfield, NC is somewhat conservative.
Johnston County, NC is strongly conservative. In Johnston County, NC 37.0% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 61.4% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 1.6% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Johnston county remained overwhelmingly Republican, 61.4% to 37.0%.
Johnston county voted Republican in every Presidential election since 2000.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Smithfield, NC is somewhat conservative.
Johnston County, North Carolina is strongly conservative.
Raleigh-Cary Metro Area is moderately liberal.
North Carolina is leaning conservative.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Smithfield, North Carolina: R R R R R R
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D if the Democratic Party candidate won and I if the Independent Party candidate won. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Smithfield, NC
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 990 contributions totaling $286,617 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $290 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 684 contributions totaling $203,667 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $298 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)