The politics of The Dalles, OR Metro Area are largely influenced by the local community and its values. The Dalles is known for being a small town with a strong sense of community and a commitment to preserving its quaint charm and character. Locals take pride in their hometown and are passionate about issues that affect them directly. Residents have an active voice in local politics, often taking part in elections for city council members, county commissioners, state representatives, and other elected officials. With a growing population and increased involvement from citizens in political conversations and initiatives, the area is sure to continue to have an impact on regional politics.
The political climate in The Dalles Metro Area is leaning conservative.
In The Dalles Metro Area 46.7% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 49.8% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 3.5% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, the The Dalles metro area remained narrowly Republican, 49.8% to 46.7%.
The The Dalles metro area voted Republican in five of the last six Presidential elections (2008 went Democratic).
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
The Dalles Metro Area is leaning conservative.
Oregon is moderately liberal.
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.
The Dalles, Oregon: r r d 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 for the Democrat and I for the Independent. 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 four elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in The Dalles Metro Area
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 2,752 contributions totaling $172,229 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $63 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 326 contributions totaling $49,245 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $151 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)