Brookline is a Democratic stronghold. About 86% of voters here vote Democratic and 14% Republican.
About 67% of adults in Brookline typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Brookline, ~58% vote Democratic, ~9% Republican, and ~33% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Brookline compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Brookline leans more Democratic than 152 of 155 neighbors.
Brookline runs about 47 points more Democratic than Massachusetts as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Brookline. The south side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+77) and the northeast side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+66), a spread of about 11 points.
Why Brookline 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 Brookline, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 85% of adults in Brookline hold a bachelor's degree, about 56 points above the U.S. average of 28%. Dense areas vote Democratic, and Brookline sits in the top fifth on density (more than 99%, in the top fraction of cities). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 44% of adults in Brookline have never been married, above 96% of cities.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Brookline, MA 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 Brookline looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Brookline 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 76%, about 16 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 98% of adults in Brookline have completed high school, above 94% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Allston, MA D+67
- Brighton, MA D+61
- Jamaica Plain, MA D+71
- Chestnut Hill, MA D+60
- Cambridge, MA D+74
- Boston, MA D+30
- Watertown, MA D+77
- Newton Center, MA D+60
- Watertown Town, MA D+57
- Somerville, MA D+69
Cities with Similar Populations
- Vero Beach, FL R+27
- Greenwood, SC R+10
- Greensburg, PA R+19
- Sebring, FL R+34
- Collierville, TN R+20
- Crown Point, IN R+17
- Logan, UT R+9
- Minnetonka, MN D+33
- Monroe, MI R+17
- Enid, OK R+39
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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.