Downtown San Francisco, San Francisco, CA Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Downtown San Francisco

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

Downtown San Francisco is a Democratic stronghold. About 78% of voters here vote Democratic and 22% Republican.

 

About 41% of adults in Downtown San Francisco typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Downtown San Francisco, ~32% vote Democratic, ~9% Republican, and ~59% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Downtown San Francisco compares

Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Downtown San Francisco leans more Democratic than 11 of 39 neighbors.

Downtown San Francisco runs about 36 points more Democratic than California as a whole.

Politics vary noticeably by block within Downtown San Francisco. The southwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+75) and the east side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+46), a spread of about 29 points.

Why Downtown San Francisco 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 San Francisco, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Dense areas vote Democratic. More than 99% of residents in Downtown San Francisco 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 56% of adults in Downtown San Francisco have never been married, above 89% of neighborhoods.

Paved land cover and Democratic lean

Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Downtown San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 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 Downtown San Francisco looks the way it does

Renters vote less often than owners. About 93% of households in Downtown San Francisco rent, about 68 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 12% of homes in Downtown San Francisco have more than one occupant per room, above 93% of neighborhoods. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and Downtown San Francisco sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. 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 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.