Forked River Beach leans heavily Republican by roughly 40 points: about 30% of voters vote Democratic and 70% Republican.
About 74% of adults in Forked River Beach typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Forked River Beach, ~22% vote Democratic, ~52% Republican, and ~26% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Forked River Beach compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Forked River Beach leans more Republican than 66 of 78 neighbors.
Forked River Beach runs about 45 points more Republican than New Jersey as a whole. New Jersey leans Democratic overall, while Forked River Beach is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Forked River Beach 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 Forked River Beach, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Forked River Beach votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 29%, far below the New Jersey average of 61%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Forked River Beach runs against the grain of New Jersey, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Forked River Beach, NJ 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 Forked River Beach looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Forked River Beach is in the top quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 67%, about 7 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Forked River, NJ R+41
- Lanoka Harbor, NJ R+42
- Waretown, NJ R+38
- Bayville, NJ R+38
- Barnegat, NJ R+27
- Beachwood, NJ R+33
- Barnegat Light, NJ D+3
- Ocean Gate, NJ R+27
- Pine Beach, NJ R+22
- South Toms River, NJ R+3
Cities with Similar Populations
- Calvary, GA R+38
- Union City, MO R+65
- Frost, MN R+47
- Sharon, KS R+77
- Ischua, NY R+48
- Norwood, KY D+18
- Rockhill, PA R+60
- Pompeys Pillar, MT R+68
- Belle Valley, OH R+60
- Timblin, PA R+74
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New Jersey Division 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.