Downtown Los Angeles is a Democratic stronghold. About 82% of voters here vote Democratic and 18% Republican.
About 43% of adults in Downtown Los Angeles typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Downtown Los Angeles, ~36% vote Democratic, ~8% Republican, and ~56% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Downtown Los Angeles compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Downtown Los Angeles leans more Democratic than 24 of 26 neighbors.
Downtown Los Angeles runs about 45 points more Democratic than California as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Downtown Los Angeles. The east side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+73) and the northwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+56), a spread of about 18 points.
Why Downtown Los Angeles 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 Downtown Los Angeles, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. More than 99% of residents in Downtown Los Angeles 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 62% of adults in Downtown Los Angeles have never been married, above 94% of neighborhoods.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Downtown Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 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 Downtown Los Angeles looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 92% of households in Downtown Los Angeles rent, about 67 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 11% of homes in Downtown Los Angeles have more than one occupant per room, above 92% of neighborhoods. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and Downtown Los Angeles sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- New Downtown, Los Angeles, CA D+54
- Wholesale District-Skid Row, Los Angeles, CA D+53
- Civic Center Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, CA D+48
- Fashion District, Los Angeles, CA D+61
- South Park, Los Angeles, CA D+58
- Chinatown, Los Angeles, CA D+36
- Central City East, Los Angeles, CA D+41
- Westlake, Los Angeles, CA D+41
- Central City, Los Angeles, CA D+45
- Historic Filipinotown, Los Angeles, CA D+44
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Red Hook, Brooklyn, NY D+62
- Broadway-Fillmore, Buffalo, NY D+47
- West Side, Scranton, PA D+8
- Cartwright, Phoenix, AZ D+36
- Sun City, Georgetown, TX R+20
- Southsuide Estates, Jacksonville, FL R+18
- Avalon Park, Chicago, IL D+86
- Central Terry, Billings, MT D+3
- Ellerbee Woods, Shreveport, LA R+50
- Pilsen, Chicago, IL D+62
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from California 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.