Lower East Side is a Democratic stronghold. About 80% of voters here vote Democratic and 20% Republican.
About 74% of adults in Lower East Side typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Lower East Side, ~59% vote Democratic, ~15% Republican, and ~26% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Lower East Side compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Lower East Side leans more Democratic than 18 of 40 neighbors.
Lower East Side runs about 61 points more Democratic than Wisconsin as a whole. Wisconsin is roughly evenly split, and Lower East Side sits clearly on the Democratic side.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Lower East Side. The north side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+70) and the southwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+51), a spread of about 19 points.
Why Lower East Side 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 Lower East Side, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Lower East Side votes against the grain of Wisconsin. Wisconsin is roughly evenly split, while Lower East Side runs about 61 points more Democratic. High college attainment predicts Democratic voting, and Lower East Side sits in the top quarter (about 65%, above 86% of neighborhoods). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 74% of adults in Lower East Side have never been married, above 98% of neighborhoods.
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Lower East Side, Milwaukee, WI sits in the top tenth 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 Lower East Side looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Lower East Side is in the top quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 69%, about 8 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Yankee Hill, Milwaukee, WI D+57
- Northpoint, Milwaukee, WI D+57
- Juneau Town, Milwaukee, WI D+48
- Murray Hill, Milwaukee, WI D+64
- Riverwest, Milwaukee, WI D+70
- Kilbourn Town, Milwaukee, WI D+57
- Harambee, Milwaukee, WI D+82
- Upper East Side, Milwaukee, WI D+58
- Downer Woods, Milwaukee, WI D+55
- North Division, Milwaukee, WI D+86
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Scotlandville, Baton Rouge, LA D+84
- Flatbush-Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, NY D+84
- Monta Loma, Mountain View, CA D+46
- Downtown Paterson, Paterson, NJ D+32
- Wanskuck, Providence, RI D+40
- Beechfielf-Irvington Area, Baltimore, MD D+83
- Southwyck, Toledo, OH D+35
- Eastmoor, Columbus, OH D+56
- Jamestown, Hephzibah, GA D+71
- Colorado University, Boulder, CO D+62
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Wisconsin Elections Commission, 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.