Hillcrest leans slightly Democratic by roughly 10 points: about 55% of voters vote Democratic and 45% Republican.
About 75% of adults in Hillcrest typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Hillcrest, ~41% vote Democratic, ~34% Republican, and ~25% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Hillcrest compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Hillcrest leans more Democratic than 3 of 13 neighbors.
Hillcrest runs about 47 points more Democratic than Idaho as a whole. Idaho leans Republican overall, while Hillcrest is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Why Hillcrest leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per neighborhood to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Hillcrest, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. More than 99% of residents in Hillcrest live in densely developed areas, about 64 points above the U.S. average of 36%. Hillcrest runs against the grain of Idaho, a Democratic-leaning pocket in a Republican-leaning state.
Developed land and Democratic lean
Places with a heavily developed built environment tend to lean Democratic; Hillcrest, Boise, ID sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Developed land does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Hillcrest looks the way it does
Areas with high high-school completion turn out at higher rates. More than 99% of adults in Hillcrest have completed high school, about 8 points above the Idaho average of 91%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Central Bench, Boise, ID D+21
- Vista, Boise, ID D+18
- Franklin Randolph, Boise, ID Even
- Depot Bench, Boise, ID D+35
- Downtown, Boise, ID D+37
- Winstead Park, Boise, ID D+20
- Southeast Boise, Boise, ID D+17
- Veterans Park, Boise, ID D+29
- Southwest Ada, Boise, ID R+21
- East End, Boise, ID D+33
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Landsdowne, Youngstown, OH D+66
- Cobblestone, Jacksonville, FL R+5
- Mark Twain, St. Louis, MO D+85
- East Village, Cuyahoga Falls, OH D+7
- West Park, Canton, OH D+16
- Angels Triangle, El Paso, TX D+22
- Mount Carmel, Wyandotte, MI R+7
- Kensington-San Francisco, Berkeley, CA D+84
- O Henry Oaks, Greensboro, NC D+60
- Rosewood, Austin, TX D+62
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Idaho 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.