Bethany Beach leans slightly Democratic by roughly 6 points: about 53% of voters vote Democratic and 47% Republican.
About 97% of adults in Bethany Beach typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Bethany Beach, ~51% vote Democratic, ~46% Republican, and ~3% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Bethany Beach compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Bethany Beach leans more Democratic than 44 of 50 neighbors.
Bethany Beach runs about 8 points more Republican than Delaware as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Bethany Beach. The west side runs the most Democratic (D+17) and the north side runs the most Republican (Even), a spread of about 17 points.
Why Bethany Beach 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 Bethany Beach, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 66% of adults in Bethany Beach hold a bachelor's degree, about 38 points above the U.S. average of 28%. Dense areas vote Democratic, and Bethany Beach sits in the top fifth on density (about 68%, above 91% of cities).
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Bethany Beach, DE sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Bethany Beach looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Bethany Beach 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 78%, about 18 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 97% of households in Bethany Beach own their home, about 22 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 99% of adults in Bethany Beach have completed high school, above 98% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Ocean View, DE R+7
- South Bethany, DE D+11
- Millville, DE R+7
- Fenwick Island, DE D+3
- Frankford, DE R+17
- Dagsboro, DE R+22
- Selbyville, DE R+19
- Long Neck, DE R+20
- Riverdale, DE R+16
- Bishopville, MD R+39
Cities with Similar Populations
- River Hills, WI D+19
- Belvedere, CA D+51
- Lipscomb, AL D+75
- Badin, NC R+18
- Lapwai, ID R+5
- Hanoverton, OH R+60
- Coltman, ID R+71
- Hadley, MI R+37
- Apache, OK R+57
- Deming, WA R+3
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Delaware Department 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. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.