Amherst Center is a Democratic stronghold. About 86% of voters here vote Democratic and 14% Republican.
About 54% of adults in Amherst Center typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Amherst Center, ~47% vote Democratic, ~7% Republican, and ~46% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Amherst Center compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Amherst Center leans more Democratic than 109 of 112 neighbors.
Amherst Center runs about 47 points more Democratic than Massachusetts as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Amherst Center. The east side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+80) and the southeast side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+69), a spread of about 11 points.
Why Amherst Center 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 Amherst Center, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 55% of adults in Amherst Center hold a bachelor's degree, about 27 points above the U.S. average of 28%. Dense areas vote Democratic, and Amherst Center sits in the top fifth on density (about 80%, above 94% of cities). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 84% of adults in Amherst Center have never been married, in the top fraction of cities.
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Amherst Center, MA sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Amherst Center looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 86% of households in Amherst Center rent, about 61 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 99% of adults in Amherst Center have completed high school, above 98% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Amherst, MA D+72
- Hadley, MA D+52
- Factory Hollow, MA D+54
- West Pelham, MA D+58
- South Amherst, MA D+76
- Hatfield, MA D+33
- Sunderland, MA D+48
- Pelham, MA D+56
- Leverett, MA D+54
- West Hatfield, MA D+34
Cities with Similar Populations
- Clinton, UT R+32
- Winchester, MA D+51
- Crawfordsville, IN R+35
- Pittsburg, KS R+16
- Elko, NV R+42
- Billerica, MA D+5
- Chowchilla, CA R+26
- Penfield, NY D+18
- South San Jose Hills, CA D+28
- Darlington, SC D+7
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, 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.