Johannesburg leans heavily Republican by roughly 36 points: about 32% of voters vote Democratic and 68% Republican.
About 36% of adults in Johannesburg typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Johannesburg, ~11% vote Democratic, ~25% Republican, and ~64% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Johannesburg compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Johannesburg leans more Republican than 3 of 7 neighbors.
Johannesburg runs about 56 points more Republican than California as a whole. California leans Democratic overall, while Johannesburg is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Johannesburg 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 Johannesburg, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with low college attainment vote Republican. About 4% of adults in Johannesburg hold a bachelor's degree, about 31 points below the California average of 35%. Johannesburg runs against the grain of California, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Johannesburg, CA sits in the bottom 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 Johannesburg looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Johannesburg is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 46%, about 16 points below the California average of 62%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 30% of adults in Johannesburg report food insecurity, above 95% of cities. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 61% of adults in Johannesburg have completed high school, in the bottom fraction of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Randsburg, CA R+36
- Ridgecrest, CA R+25
- China Lake Acres, CA R+39
- Cantil, CA R+35
- Inyokern, CA R+40
- Desert Lake, CA R+45
- California City, CA R+14
- Boron, CA R+35
- North Edwards, CA R+40
Cities with Similar Populations
- Zetto, GA D+9
- Douglass, SC D+38
- Centennial, IN R+64
- Yantisville, IL R+65
- Yankeetown, TN R+72
- Birds Landing, CA R+33
- Osborns Store, VA R+68
- Snoqualmie Pass, WA R+13
- Miner, MT Even
- Messex, CO R+72
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.