Kansas City, KS Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Kansas City

By the BestNeighborhood data science team. Last updated May 2026.

Kansas City leans Democratic by roughly 30 points: about 65% of voters vote Democratic and 35% Republican.

 

About 46% of adults in Kansas City typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Kansas City, ~30% vote Democratic, ~16% Republican, and ~54% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Kansas City compares

Among cities within 25 miles, Kansas City leans more Democratic than 76 of 84 neighbors.

Kansas City runs about 45 points more Democratic than Kansas as a whole. Kansas leans Republican overall, while Kansas City is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.

Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Kansas City. The northeast side runs the most Democratic (D+65) and the southwest side runs the most Republican (R+5), a spread of about 69 points.

Why Kansas City 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 Kansas City, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Dense areas vote Democratic. About 83% of residents in Kansas City live in densely developed areas, about 47 points above the U.S. average of 36%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 41% of adults in Kansas City have never been married, above 94% of cities. Kansas City runs against the grain of Kansas, a Democratic-leaning pocket in a Republican-leaning state.

Walkability and Democratic lean

Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Kansas City, KS 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 Kansas City looks the way it does

Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Kansas City is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 37% of households in Kansas City rent, above 93% of cities. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 25% of adults in Kansas City report food insecurity, above 91% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.

Sources and methodology

Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Kansas 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.