02859 leans Republican by roughly 16 points: about 42% of voters vote Democratic and 58% Republican. These figures are model estimates: Rhode Island did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the numbers above come from demographic and health features rather than local ground truth.
About 73% of adults in 02859 typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in 02859, ~31% vote Democratic, ~42% Republican, and ~27% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How 02859 compares
Among zip codes within 15 miles, 02859 leans more Republican than 27 of 32 neighbors.
02859 runs about 31 points more Republican than Rhode Island as a whole. Rhode Island leans Democratic overall, while 02859 is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by block within 02859. The west side is the most Republican-leaning (R+29) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+6), a spread of about 23 points.
Why 02859 leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per zip code to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for 02859, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
02859 votes against the grain of Rhode Island. Rhode Island leans Democratic overall, while 02859 runs about 31 points more Republican. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 78% of households in 02859 are family households, above 87% of zip codes.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; 02859, RI sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in 02859 looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. 02859 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 71%, about 11 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Zip Codes
Zip Codes with Similar Populations
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Rhode Island Board of 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. RI did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the figures here come from extrapolation across demographic, health, and land-use features rather than local ground truth. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.