Clayton leans Republican by roughly 16 points: about 42% of voters vote Democratic and 58% Republican.
About 80% of adults in Clayton typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Clayton, ~34% vote Democratic, ~46% Republican, and ~20% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Clayton compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Clayton leans more Republican than 31 of 101 neighbors.
Clayton runs about 30 points more Republican than Delaware as a whole. Delaware leans Democratic overall, while Clayton is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Clayton. The southeast side runs the most Democratic (D+34) and the west side runs the most Republican (R+45), a spread of about 78 points.
Why Clayton 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 Clayton, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Clayton votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 32%, modestly below the Delaware average of 43%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 78% of households in Clayton are family households, above 85% of cities. Clayton runs against the grain of Delaware, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Renting and voter turnout
Places with homeowner-heavy households tend to turn out at a higher rate; Clayton, DE sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Clayton looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 92% of households in Clayton own their home, about 14 points above the Delaware average of 78%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Kenton, DE R+40
- Smyrna, DE D+15
- Seeneytown, DE R+36
- Smyrna Landing, DE R+43
- Eberton, DE D+11
- Cheswold, DE D+12
- Downs Chapel, DE R+41
- Peacock Corners, MD R+35
- Point Breeze, DE R+15
Cities with Similar Populations
- Crozet, VA D+16
- House Springs, MO R+45
- Sumrall, MS R+73
- Salem, UT R+60
- Lusby, MD R+9
- Wellington, OH R+37
- Moscow Mills, MO R+48
- Terrace Heights, WA R+23
- Payette, ID R+53
- Granite Falls, WA R+17
All Local Stats
Home Services
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Delaware 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.