Highland Lake leans Republican by roughly 18 points: about 41% of voters vote Democratic and 59% Republican.
About 94% of adults in Highland Lake typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Highland Lake, ~39% vote Democratic, ~55% Republican, and ~6% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Highland Lake compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Highland Lake leans more Republican than 102 of 178 neighbors.
Highland Lake runs about 23 points more Republican than New Jersey as a whole. New Jersey leans Democratic overall, while Highland Lake is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Highland Lake. The northeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+34) and the north side is the least Republican-leaning (R+9), a spread of about 25 points.
Why Highland Lake 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 Highland Lake, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Highland Lake votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 34%, well below the New Jersey average of 61%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Highland Lake runs against the grain of New Jersey, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Highland Lake, NJ sits in the top tenth 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 Highland Lake looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Highland Lake 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 74%, about 14 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 94% of households in Highland Lake own their home, about 19 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 98% of adults in Highland Lake have completed high school, above 96% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Highland Lakes, NJ R+23
- Vernon, NJ R+26
- Glenwood, NJ R+27
- Upper Greenwood Lake, NJ R+21
- Hewitt, NJ R+22
- Hamburg, NJ R+18
- Sussex, NJ R+25
- West Milford, NJ R+24
- Franklin, NJ R+23
- Stockholm, NJ R+29
Cities with Similar Populations
- Fordyce, AR R+7
- Centreville, IL D+84
- Burnettown, SC R+33
- Oak Grove, LA R+73
- Great Falls, SC R+33
- Marietta, OK R+57
- Jacksonville, OR R+6
- Paxton, MA D+12
- Prudenville, MI R+27
- Farley, KY R+41
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.