Maryland Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Maryland

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

Maryland leans heavily Democratic by roughly 32 points: about 66% of voters vote Democratic and 34% Republican.

 

About 71% of adults in Maryland typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Maryland, ~47% vote Democratic, ~24% Republican, and ~29% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Maryland compares

Among states within 500 miles, Maryland leans more Democratic than 14 of 15 neighbors.

Politics vary noticeably by county within Maryland. The southwest side runs the most Democratic (D+65) and the northwest side runs the most Republican (R+10), a spread of about 75 points.

Why Maryland leans the way it does

This analysis examined 14,881 data points per state to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Maryland, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 43% of adults in Maryland hold a bachelor's degree, about 15 points above the U.S. average of 28%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 36% of adults in Maryland have never been married, above 88% of states.

Walkability and Democratic lean

Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Maryland sits in the top quarter 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 Maryland looks the way it does

Turnout in Maryland sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.

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Sources and methodology

Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Maryland State Board 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.