Imperial leans slightly Republican by roughly 12 points: about 44% of voters vote Democratic and 56% Republican.
About 49% of adults in Imperial typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Imperial, ~22% vote Democratic, ~27% Republican, and ~51% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Imperial compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Imperial leans more Republican than 7 of 13 neighbors.
Imperial runs about 32 points more Republican than California as a whole. California leans Democratic overall, while Imperial is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Imperial. The northwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+23) and the south side is the least Republican-leaning (R+5), a spread of about 18 points.
Why Imperial 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 Imperial, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Imperial votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 57%, about 21 points above the U.S. average of 36%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 80% of households in Imperial are family households, above 89% of cities. Imperial runs against the grain of California, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
High-school completion, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine low high-school-completion share and a heavily developed built environment tend to turn out at a lower rate, as Imperial, CA does.
Why turnout in Imperial looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Imperial is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 24% of adults in Imperial report food insecurity, above 89% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- El Centro, CA D+6
- Meloland, CA R+12
- Heber, CA D+5
- Brawley, CA D+4
- Seeley, CA R+31
- Mount Signal, CA R+12
- Holtville, CA R+12
- Calexico, CA D+12
- Westmorland, CA R+16
- Date City, CA R+33
Cities with Similar Populations
- Portland, TN R+58
- Lakeside, VA D+32
- Lyndhurst, NJ R+12
- St. Andrews, SC D+59
- Siloam Springs, AR R+36
- Horizon City, TX D+6
- Dyer, IN R+16
- Fallon, NV R+43
- North Liberty, IA D+24
- Wetumpka, AL R+47
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from California 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.