Mattapan is a Democratic stronghold. About 87% of voters here vote Democratic and 13% Republican.
About 46% of adults in Mattapan typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Mattapan, ~40% vote Democratic, ~6% Republican, and ~54% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Mattapan compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Mattapan leans more Democratic than 150 of 152 neighbors.
Mattapan runs about 49 points more Democratic than Massachusetts as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Mattapan. The southwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+79) and the north side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+65), a spread of about 14 points.
Why Mattapan 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 Mattapan, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. About 99% of residents in Mattapan live in densely developed areas, about 62 points above the U.S. average of 36%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 50% of adults in Mattapan have never been married, above 98% of cities.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Mattapan, MA 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 Mattapan looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 61% of households in Mattapan rent, about 36 points above the U.S. average of 25%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 32% of adults in Mattapan report food insecurity, above 96% of cities. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and Mattapan sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Milton, MA D+45
- Roslindale, MA D+61
- Hyde Park, MA D+59
- Jamaica Plain, MA D+71
- West Roxbury, MA D+40
- Boston, MA D+30
- Quincy, MA D+28
- Brookline, MA D+72
- Dedham, MA D+27
- Chestnut Hill, MA D+60
Cities with Similar Populations
- Wheeling, WV R+17
- La Porte, TX R+36
- Desert Hot Springs, CA D+13
- Culpeper, VA R+14
- Farmington, MN R+11
- Fairbanks, AK D+5
- Fair Lawn, NJ D+3
- Pekin, IL R+25
- Greenfield, IN R+38
- Oxford, MS R+12
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, 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.