Essex leans Republican by roughly 28 points: about 36% of voters vote Democratic and 64% Republican.
About 30% of adults in Essex typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Essex, ~11% vote Democratic, ~19% Republican, and ~70% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Essex compares
Essex runs about 48 points more Republican than California as a whole. California leans Democratic overall, while Essex is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Essex 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 Essex, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Essex votes against the grain of California. California leans Democratic overall, while Essex runs about 48 points more Republican. Rural areas vote Republican, and Essex sits in the bottom quarter on density (fewer than 1%, in the bottom fraction of cities). Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Essex sits in the bottom quarter (about 7%, below 97% of cities).
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Essex, CA sits in the bottom quarter nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in Essex looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Essex is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 54% of households in Essex rent, compared to around 32% in nearby cities. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 27% of adults in Essex report food insecurity, above 93% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Needles, CA R+25
- Cal Nev Ari, NV R+44
- Mohave Valley, AZ R+44
- Fort Mohave, AZ R+43
- Laughlin, NV R+21
- Bullhead City, AZ R+30
- Golden Shores, AZ R+49
- Topock, AZ R+47
Cities with Similar Populations
- Rockwest, AL R+21
- Frenchboro, ME D+4
- Mount Blanco, TX R+72
- Amistad, NM R+69
- Vinson, OK R+73
- Honeyford, ND R+46
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.