Northwest Berkeley is a Democratic stronghold. About 91% of voters here vote Democratic and 9% Republican.
About 76% of adults in Northwest Berkeley typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Northwest Berkeley, ~69% vote Democratic, ~7% Republican, and ~24% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Northwest Berkeley compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Northwest Berkeley leans more Democratic than 25 of 36 neighbors.
Northwest Berkeley runs about 62 points more Democratic than California as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Northwest Berkeley. The northeast side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+91) and the northwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+75), a spread of about 16 points.
Why Northwest Berkeley leans the way it does
This analysis examined 14,881 data points per neighborhood to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Northwest Berkeley, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 67% of adults in Northwest Berkeley hold a bachelor's degree, about 38 points above the U.S. average of 28%.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Northwest Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 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 Northwest Berkeley looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Northwest Berkeley 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 72%, about 12 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Westbrae, Berkeley, CA D+87
- Central Berkeley, Berkeley, CA D+84
- Santa Fe, Emeryville, CA D+81
- SouthWest Berkeley, Berkeley, CA D+79
- Downtown Berkeley, Berkeley, CA D+76
- North Berkeley, Berkeley, CA D+82
- Thousand Oaks, Berkeley, CA D+77
- Berkeley Hills, Berkeley, CA D+83
- South Berkeley, Berkeley, CA D+79
- Kensington-San Francisco, Berkeley, CA D+84
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Providence Estates East, Matthews, NC D+3
- Lake Terrace and Oaks, New Orleans, LA D+41
- South Wedge, Rochester, NY D+70
- White Caps, Kenosha, WI D+4
- Holly, Austin, TX D+62
- Town of Blake, South Daytona, FL R+13
- Historic Uptown, St. Petersburg, FL D+34
- Downtown Menlo Park, Menlo Park, CA D+71
- Rancho Fontana, Fontana, CA D+9
- Point Richmond, Richmond, CA D+66
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from California Secretary 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.