Newport leans heavily Democratic by roughly 48 points: about 74% of voters vote Democratic and 26% Republican. These figures are model estimates: Rhode Island did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the numbers above come from demographic and health features rather than local ground truth.
About 56% of adults in Newport typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Newport, ~41% vote Democratic, ~15% Republican, and ~44% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Newport compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Newport is the most Democratic-leaning.
Newport runs about 33 points more Democratic than Rhode Island as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Newport. The east side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+58) and the north side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+33), a spread of about 26 points.
Why Newport 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 Newport, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 57% of adults in Newport hold a bachelor's degree, about 28 points above the U.S. average of 28%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 47% of adults in Newport have never been married, above 97% of cities.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Newport, RI 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 Newport looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 51% of households in Newport rent, about 26 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Strong routine healthcare access lines up with higher turnout, and Newport sits in the top quarter on routine-care measures. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Newport East, RI D+15
- Middletown, RI D+17
- Jamestown, RI D+25
- Portsmouth, RI D+19
- Saunderstown, RI D+13
- Little Compton, RI D+9
- Prudence Island, RI D+35
- Narragansett, RI D+19
- Narragansett Pier, RI D+29
Cities with Similar Populations
- Avon, OH R+8
- Wildwood, MO R+16
- Selden, NY R+20
- Ives Estates, FL D+35
- Mill Creek East, WA D+23
- Duncan, OK R+51
- Marietta, OH R+29
- Waukee, IA Even
- Festus, MO R+42
- Coos Bay, OR R+6
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Rhode Island 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. RI did not have precinct-level voting records available for training, so the figures here come from extrapolation across demographic, health, and land-use features rather than local ground truth. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.