New Salem leans heavily Republican by roughly 40 points: about 30% of voters vote Democratic and 70% Republican.
About 80% of adults in New Salem typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in New Salem, ~24% vote Democratic, ~56% Republican, and ~20% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How New Salem compares
Among cities within 25 miles, New Salem leans more Republican than 54 of 55 neighbors.
New Salem runs about 39 points more Republican than Michigan as a whole.
Why New Salem 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 New Salem, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many family households vote Republican. About 79% of households in New Salem are family households, about 12 points above the U.S. average of 67%.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; New Salem, MI sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in New Salem looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. New Salem 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 71%, about 11 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 91% of households in New Salem own their home, about 16 points above the U.S. average of 75%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Byron, MI R+40
- Cohoctah, MI R+40
- Bancroft, MI R+40
- Durand, MI R+30
- Gaines, MI R+33
- Deerfield Center, MI R+35
- Morrice, MI R+34
- Linden, MI R+23
- Vernon, MI R+34
- Fowlerville, MI R+37
Cities with Similar Populations
- Pasadena Hills, MO D+75
- New Manchester, WV R+62
- Keytesville, MO R+66
- Essex, MO R+68
- Queen City, MO R+65
- Prospertown, NJ R+40
- Equinunk, PA R+38
- Piffard, NY R+33
- Gettysburg, OH R+66
- Seville, FL R+50
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.