Chinatown is a Democratic stronghold. About 80% of voters here vote Democratic and 20% Republican.
About 62% of adults in Chinatown typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Chinatown, ~50% vote Democratic, ~12% Republican, and ~38% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Chinatown compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Chinatown leans more Democratic than 15 of 50 neighbors.
Chinatown runs about 62 points more Democratic than Pennsylvania as a whole. Pennsylvania is roughly evenly split, and Chinatown sits clearly on the Democratic side.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Chinatown. The northwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+77) and the southwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+52), a spread of about 25 points.
Why Chinatown leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per neighborhood to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Chinatown, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. More than 99% of residents in Chinatown live in densely developed areas, about 64 points above the U.S. average of 36%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 61% of adults in Chinatown have never been married, above 94% of neighborhoods. Chinatown runs against the grain of Pennsylvania, a Democratic-leaning outlier in a roughly evenly split state.
Population density and Democratic lean
Places with high population density tend to lean Democratic; Chinatown, Philadelphia, PA sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Chinatown looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 79% of households in Chinatown rent, about 54 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- City Center East, Philadelphia, PA D+71
- City Center West, Philadelphia, PA D+70
- Spring Garden, Philadelphia, PA D+71
- Bella Vista, Philadelphia, PA D+76
- Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, PA D+67
- Poplar-Ludlow-Yorktowne, Philadelphia, PA D+77
- Fairmount, Philadelphia, PA D+75
- Schuylkill Southwest, Philadelphia, PA D+79
- Fishtown, Philadelphia, PA D+66
- Wharton-Hawthorne-Bella Vista, Philadelphia, PA D+60
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Northgate, San Rafael, CA D+41
- Central Carrollton, Carrollton, TX D+8
- Union-Miles Park, Cleveland, OH D+87
- Rancho Sahuarita, Sahuarita, AZ R+5
- Fairview, Camden, NJ D+55
- Cherry Hill, Brooklyn, MD D+82
- Duluth Heights, Duluth, MN D+16
- West Newton, Newton, MA D+60
- Woodley Park, Washington, DC D+80
- Downtown St Petersburg, St. Petersburg, FL D+15
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau 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.