Petersham leans slightly Democratic by roughly 14 points: about 57% of voters vote Democratic and 43% Republican.
About 70% of adults in Petersham typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Petersham, ~40% vote Democratic, ~30% Republican, and ~30% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Petersham compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Petersham leans more Democratic than 88 of 117 neighbors.
Petersham runs about 10 points more Republican than Massachusetts as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Petersham. The east side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+16) and the south side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+4), a spread of about 12 points.
Why Petersham 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 Petersham, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 42% of adults in Petersham hold a bachelor's degree, about 14 points above the U.S. average of 28%.
High-school completion, developed land, and voter turnout
Places that combine high-school-completion-heavy adults and a rural land-use pattern tend to turn out at a higher rate, as Petersham, MA does.
Why turnout in Petersham looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Petersham 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 74%, about 14 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 94% of households in Petersham own their home, about 19 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 98% of adults in Petersham have completed high school, above 94% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- South Athol, MA D+6
- Phillipston, MA R+15
- Williamsville, MA R+10
- Packard Heights, MA R+9
- Barre, MA R+5
- South Barre, MA R+12
- Athol, MA R+8
- New Salem, MA D+33
- Phillipston Four Corners, MA R+24
- Templeton, MA R+15
Cities with Similar Populations
- Hanska, MN R+49
- Cowansville, PA R+60
- Sylvan Beach, NY R+32
- Crowell, TX R+69
- Benet Lake, WI R+25
- Lanford, SC R+54
- Gilliam, LA R+21
- Clintonville, PA R+56
- Millbrook, MI R+43
- McBrayer, KY R+56
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, 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.