East St. Louis is a Democratic stronghold. About 91% of voters here vote Democratic and 9% Republican.
About 61% of adults in East St. Louis typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in East St. Louis, ~56% vote Democratic, ~5% Republican, and ~39% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How East St. Louis compares
Among cities within 25 miles, East St. Louis leans more Democratic than 155 of 168 neighbors.
East St. Louis runs about 72 points more Democratic than Illinois as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within East St. Louis. The northeast side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+88) and the south side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+63), a spread of about 25 points.
Why East St. Louis 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 East St. Louis, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. About 90% of residents in East St. Louis live in densely developed areas, about 53 points above the U.S. average of 36%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 50% of adults in East St. Louis have never been married, above 98% of cities.
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; East St. Louis, IL 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 East St. Louis looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. East St. Louis is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 46%, about 17 points below the Illinois average of 63%. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 39% of households in East St. Louis rent, above 93% of cities. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 42% of adults in East St. Louis report food insecurity, in the top fraction of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Washington Park, IL D+63
- Alorton, IL D+82
- Centreville, IL D+84
- Fairmont City, IL D+6
- Sauget, IL D+45
- Brooklyn, IL D+85
- Lovejoy, IL D+74
- Cahokia, IL D+57
- Venice, IL D+87
- Madison, IL D+39
Cities with Similar Populations
- Walled Lake, MI R+3
- Newport, NC R+39
- Newton Center, MA D+60
- Bainbridge, GA Even
- Hermosa Beach, CA D+37
- East Massapequa, NY R+9
- Grand Island, NY R+9
- La Canada Flintridge, CA D+19
- Yankton, SD R+31
- Clive, IA D+10
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Illinois State Board 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.