Chelan leans Republican by roughly 22 points: about 39% of voters vote Democratic and 61% Republican.
About 76% of adults in Chelan typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Chelan, ~30% vote Democratic, ~46% Republican, and ~24% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Chelan compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Chelan leans more Republican than 4 of 14 neighbors.
Chelan runs about 40 points more Republican than Washington as a whole. Washington leans Democratic overall, while Chelan is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Chelan. The southwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+34) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+8), a spread of about 26 points.
Why Chelan 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 Chelan, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Chelan votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 37%, above 83% of cities). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Chelan runs against the grain of Washington, 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; Chelan, WA 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 Chelan looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Chelan is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Lakeside, WA R+27
- Chelan Falls, WA R+21
- Manson, WA R+23
- Orondo, WA R+27
- Waterville, WA R+38
- Pateros, WA R+27
- Entiat, WA R+35
- Withrow, WA R+50
- Ardenvoir, WA R+33
- Mansfield, WA R+46
Cities with Similar Populations
- Koloa, HI D+25
- Iron River, MI R+21
- Brielle, NJ R+19
- Priest River, ID R+56
- Ovilla, TX R+22
- Belden, MS R+37
- Leetonia, OH R+50
- Dresher, PA D+31
- Evans City, PA R+33
- Northbridge, MA Even
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Washington 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.