Burlington is a true toss-up. About 50% of voters here vote Democratic and 50% Republican.
About 78% of adults in Burlington typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Burlington, ~39% vote Democratic, ~39% Republican, and ~22% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Burlington compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Burlington sits roughly in the middle of the political spectrum, with 55 neighbors leaning further in the place's direction and 0 leaning the other way.
Burlington runs about 14 points more Democratic than Iowa as a whole. Iowa leans Republican overall, while Burlington sits closer to the political middle.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Burlington. The east side runs the most Democratic (D+12) and the northeast side runs the most Republican (R+10), a spread of about 22 points.
Why Burlington 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 Burlington, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Burlington votes against the grain of Iowa. Iowa leans Republican overall, while Burlington runs about 14 points more Democratic.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Burlington, IA 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 Burlington looks the way it does
Turnout in Burlington sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- West Burlington, IA R+15
- Shokokon, IL R+32
- Spring Grove, IA R+33
- Latty, IA R+37
- Hopper, IL R+34
- Carman, IL R+38
- Middletown, IA R+40
- Gladstone, IL R+29
- Lomax, IL R+48
Cities with Similar Populations
- Watertown, WI R+22
- Stillwater, MN D+12
- Baldwin, NY D+40
- Monsey, NY R+92
- Round Lake Beach, IL D+16
- Parrish, FL R+32
- Garden City, NY R+16
- Yelm, WA R+20
- Hartsville, SC R+21
- Chapin, SC R+40
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Iowa Secretary of State, 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.