Muskegon Heights is a Democratic stronghold. About 88% of voters here vote Democratic and 12% Republican.
About 64% of adults in Muskegon Heights typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Muskegon Heights, ~56% vote Democratic, ~8% Republican, and ~36% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Muskegon Heights compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Muskegon Heights is the most Democratic-leaning.
Muskegon Heights runs about 78 points more Democratic than Michigan as a whole. Michigan is roughly evenly split, and Muskegon Heights sits clearly on the Democratic side.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Muskegon Heights. The northeast side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+89) and the southwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+59), a spread of about 30 points.
Why Muskegon Heights 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 Muskegon Heights, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. About 99% of residents in Muskegon Heights 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 51% of adults in Muskegon Heights have never been married, above 98% of cities. Muskegon Heights runs against the grain of Michigan, a Democratic-leaning outlier in a roughly evenly split state.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Muskegon Heights, MI 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 Muskegon Heights looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Muskegon Heights 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 45%, about 22 points below the Michigan average of 67%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Roosevelt Park, MI D+7
- Norton Shores, MI R+2
- Muskegon, MI D+7
- North Muskegon, MI Even
- Fruitport, MI R+22
- Ferrysburg, MI R+5
- Wolf Lake, MI R+23
- Spring Lake, MI R+8
- Sullivan, MI R+39
- Twin Lake, MI R+26
Cities with Similar Populations
- Hull, MA D+15
- Waynesboro, MS R+9
- Portland, MI R+31
- Ripon, WI R+21
- Maywood, NJ D+8
- Tonganoxie, KS R+38
- Struthers, OH R+12
- Ward, AR R+63
- Brentwood, PA D+14
- Croydon, PA R+6
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Michigan Department of State, 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.