La Mesa leans heavily Democratic by roughly 32 points: about 66% of voters vote Democratic and 34% Republican.
About 38% of adults in La Mesa typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in La Mesa, ~25% vote Democratic, ~13% Republican, and ~62% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How La Mesa compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, La Mesa leans more Democratic than 12 of 17 neighbors.
La Mesa runs about 27 points more Democratic than New Mexico as a whole.
Why La Mesa 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 La Mesa, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many never-married adults vote Democratic. About 49% of adults in La Mesa have never been married, modestly above similar-sized neighborhoods (around 44%).
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; La Mesa, Albuquerque, NM sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in La Mesa looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. La Mesa 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 48%, about 9 points below the New Mexico average of 58%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 37% of adults in La Mesa report food insecurity, above 90% of neighborhoods. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and La Mesa sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Trumbull Village, Albuquerque, NM D+23
- South Los Altos, Albuquerque, NM D+25
- South San Pedro, Albuquerque, NM D+30
- Uptown, Albuquerque, NM D+30
- Princess Jeanne, Albuquerque, NM D+17
- Nob Hill, Albuquerque, NM D+72
- Se Heights, Albuquerque, NM D+55
- Singing Arrow, Albuquerque, NM D+20
- Tijeras Arroyo, Albuquerque, NM D+17
- Victory Hills, Albuquerque, NM D+51
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Roosevelt, Iowa City, IA D+55
- Newport, Bellevue, WA D+43
- Duncan Park, Lexington, KY D+68
- Downtown Oakdale, Oakdale, CA R+17
- Central City Santa Ana, Santa Ana, CA D+32
- Hawthorne, Minneapolis, MN D+62
- Uptown, Racine, WI D+59
- North Lamar, Austin, TX D+37
- Southgate, Hayward, CA D+39
- Abbott McKinley, Buffalo, NY D+16
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New Mexico Secretary of State, Bureau 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.