Kirkwood leans Democratic by roughly 30 points: about 65% of voters vote Democratic and 35% Republican.
About 77% of adults in Kirkwood typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Kirkwood, ~50% vote Democratic, ~27% Republican, and ~23% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Kirkwood compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Kirkwood leans more Democratic than 122 of 132 neighbors.
Kirkwood runs about 15 points more Democratic than Delaware as a whole.
Why Kirkwood 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 Kirkwood, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Density combined with diversity predicts Democratic voting. Non-Hispanic white share in Kirkwood is about 15%, about 57 points below the U.S. average of 72%. High college attainment predicts Democratic voting, and Kirkwood sits in the top quarter (about 44%, above 90% of cities). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 35% of adults in Kirkwood have never been married, above 87% of cities.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Kirkwood, DE sits above the national average on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Kirkwood looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. More than 99% of households in Kirkwood own their home, about 22 points above the Delaware average of 78%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- St. Georges, DE Even
- Bear, DE D+32
- Delaware City, DE R+4
- Port Penn, DE R+4
- Middletown, DE D+16
- Glasgow, DE D+24
- Odessa, DE D+4
- St. Augustine, MD R+41
- Brookside, DE D+24
- Newark, DE D+34
Cities with Similar Populations
- Pecan Hill, TX R+44
- Elmore, MN R+46
- Branch, AR R+69
- Flatrock, WV R+59
- Heinola, MN R+44
- Shutter Corners, NY R+32
- Noatak, AK D+24
- Osmond, NC R+32
- Mount Vernon Club Place, CO D+25
- Reader, WV R+70
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Delaware Department 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.