Boston leans Republican by roughly 30 points: about 35% of voters vote Democratic and 65% Republican.
About 82% of adults in Boston typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Boston, ~29% vote Democratic, ~53% Republican, and ~18% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Boston compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Boston leans more Republican than 41 of 98 neighbors.
Boston runs about 42 points more Republican than New York as a whole. New York leans Democratic overall, while Boston is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Boston 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 Boston, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 88% of residents in Boston drive to work alone, about 14 points above the U.S. average of 74%. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 77% of households in Boston are family households, above 82% of cities. Boston runs against the grain of New York, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Boston, NY sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Boston looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Boston 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 70%, about 10 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 99% of adults in Boston have completed high school, above 98% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Colden, NY R+15
- Glenwood, NY R+33
- West Falls, NY R+23
- Langford, NY R+41
- Eden, NY R+25
- East Concord, NY R+41
- Marshfield, NY R+42
- Springville, NY R+25
- Taylorshire, NY R+18
- Hamburg, NY R+4
Cities with Similar Populations
- Greenville, GA R+12
- Patton, PA R+49
- Maypearl, TX R+67
- Atglen, PA R+25
- Harrison, ME Even
- Pleasantville, IA R+40
- Charlotte Park, FL R+31
- Munsey Park, NY R+5
- Racine, OH R+64
- Reidville, SC R+43
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New York State 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. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.