Charlottesville, VA Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Charlottesville

By the BestNeighborhood data science team. Last updated May 2026.

Charlottesville leans heavily Democratic by roughly 44 points: about 72% of voters vote Democratic and 28% Republican.

 

About 74% of adults in Charlottesville typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Charlottesville, ~53% vote Democratic, ~21% Republican, and ~26% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Charlottesville compares

Among cities within 25 miles, Charlottesville is the most Democratic-leaning.

Charlottesville runs about 39 points more Democratic than Virginia as a whole.

Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Charlottesville. The south side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+59) and the northwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+26), a spread of about 33 points.

Why Charlottesville 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 Charlottesville, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 62% of adults in Charlottesville hold a bachelor's degree, about 33 points above the U.S. average of 28%. Dense areas vote Democratic, and Charlottesville sits in the top fifth on density (about 74%, above 93% of cities). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 43% of adults in Charlottesville have never been married, above 95% of cities.

Paved land cover and Democratic lean

Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Charlottesville, VA 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 Charlottesville looks the way it does

Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Charlottesville 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 69%, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.

Sources and methodology

Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Virginia 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.