Oakland leans slightly Republican by roughly 12 points: about 44% of voters vote Democratic and 56% Republican.
About 83% of adults in Oakland typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Oakland, ~37% vote Democratic, ~46% Republican, and ~17% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Oakland compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Oakland leans more Republican than 204 of 281 neighbors.
Oakland runs about 18 points more Republican than New Jersey as a whole. New Jersey leans Democratic overall, while Oakland is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Why Oakland 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 Oakland, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Oakland votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 74%, modestly above the New Jersey average of 61%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 78% of households in Oakland are family households, above 85% of cities. Oakland runs against the grain of New Jersey, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Food insecurity and voter turnout
Places with low food insecurity tend to turn out at a higher rate; Oakland, NJ sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Food insecurity does not directly drive turnout; it reflects economic hardship, which lines up with lower voting.
Why turnout in Oakland looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Oakland 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 75%, about 15 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 94% of households in Oakland own their home, about 19 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 97% of adults in Oakland have completed high school, above 91% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Franklin Lakes, NJ R+20
- Wanaque, NJ R+13
- Pompton Lakes, NJ R+18
- Wyckoff, NJ R+5
- Ringwood, NJ R+14
- Ramsey, NJ Even
- North Haledon, NJ R+20
- Mahwah, NJ R+5
- Allendale, NJ D+7
- Riverdale, NJ R+8
Cities with Similar Populations
- Harvard, IL R+11
- Inwood, WV R+39
- Wills Point, TX R+65
- Swarthmore, PA D+35
- New Oxford, PA R+38
- Arkadelphia, AR R+4
- Bellbrook, OH R+19
- Hamilton Square, NJ Even
- Ocean Pines, MD R+15
- Monaca, PA R+21
All Local Stats
Home Services
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from New Jersey Division 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. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.