Harwood Heights leans slightly Republican by roughly 14 points: about 43% of voters vote Democratic and 57% Republican.
About 58% of adults in Harwood Heights typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Harwood Heights, ~25% vote Democratic, ~33% Republican, and ~42% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Harwood Heights compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Harwood Heights leans more Republican than 144 of 150 neighbors.
Harwood Heights runs about 24 points more Republican than Illinois as a whole. Illinois leans Democratic overall, while Harwood Heights is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Harwood Heights 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 Harwood Heights, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Harwood Heights votes Republican even though it is densely developed (more than 99%, far above the Illinois average of 33%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Harwood Heights runs against the grain of Illinois, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Harwood Heights, IL 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 Harwood Heights looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 39% of households in Harwood Heights rent, about 14 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 5% of homes in Harwood Heights have more than one occupant per room, above 89% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Norridge, IL R+21
- Elmwood Park, IL D+19
- River Grove, IL R+4
- Schiller Park, IL R+13
- Park Ridge, IL D+13
- Franklin Park, IL D+6
- Rosemont, IL R+9
- Lincolnwood, IL D+5
- Niles, IL R+7
- River Forest, IL D+55
Cities with Similar Populations
- Fairmount, NY D+14
- Walnut Cove, NC R+52
- Woodlake, CA R+3
- North Versailles, PA D+5
- Gering, NE R+43
- Rumford, RI D+16
- Metter, GA R+38
- Frankfort Square, IL R+13
- Kingston, WA D+33
- Olive Hill, KY R+63
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.