Harvard leans slightly Republican by roughly 10 points: about 45% of voters vote Democratic and 55% Republican.
About 61% of adults in Harvard typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Harvard, ~27% vote Democratic, ~34% Republican, and ~39% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Harvard compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Harvard leans more Republican than 23 of 94 neighbors.
Harvard runs about 21 points more Republican than Illinois as a whole. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Harvard is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Harvard. The southwest side is the most split-leaning (R+26) and the east side is the least split-leaning (Even), a spread of about 26 points.
Why Harvard 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 Harvard, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Harvard votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 35%, above 82% of cities). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Harvard runs against the grain of Illinois, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Never-married share, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine a never-married-heavy adult population and a heavily developed built environment tend to turn out at a lower rate, as Harvard, IL does.
Why turnout in Harvard looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Harvard 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 32% of households in Harvard rent, above 86% of cities. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 6% of homes in Harvard have more than one occupant per room, above 92% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Lawrence, IL R+15
- Hartland, IL R+28
- Capron, IL R+33
- Walworth, WI R+18
- Sharon, WI R+39
- Fontana-on-Geneva Lake, WI R+2
- Hebron, IL R+29
- Linton, WI R+37
- Fontana, WI R+6
- Franklinville, IL R+17
Cities with Similar Populations
- Oakland, NJ R+12
- Inwood, WV R+39
- Wills Point, TX R+65
- Swarthmore, PA D+35
- Arkadelphia, AR R+4
- New Oxford, PA R+38
- Bellbrook, OH R+19
- Hamilton Square, NJ Even
- Ocean Pines, MD R+15
- Morrow, OH R+46
All Local Stats
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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.