Pleasant Hills leans Republican by roughly 16 points: about 42% of voters vote Democratic and 58% Republican.
About more than 99% of adults in Pleasant Hills typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Pleasant Hills, ~43% vote Democratic, ~59% Republican, and ~-2% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Pleasant Hills compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Pleasant Hills leans more Republican than 73 of 128 neighbors.
Pleasant Hills runs about 45 points more Republican than Maryland as a whole. Maryland leans Democratic overall, while Pleasant Hills is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Pleasant Hills. The southeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+29) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+10), a spread of about 19 points.
Why Pleasant Hills 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 Pleasant Hills, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Pleasant Hills votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 53%, modestly above the Maryland average of 43%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. Pleasant Hills runs against the grain of Maryland, a Republican-leaning pocket in a Democratic-leaning state.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with strong routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Pleasant Hills, MD sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.
Why turnout in Pleasant Hills looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Pleasant Hills 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 97% of households in Pleasant Hills own their home, about 22 points above the U.S. average of 75%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 96% of adults in Pleasant Hills have completed high school, above 85% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Kingsville, MD R+32
- Joppa, MD R+23
- Upper Falls, MD R+39
- Fallston, MD R+26
- Bel Air South, MD Even
- Hydes, MD R+26
- Bel Air, MD R+8
- Bel Air North, MD R+13
- Joppatowne, MD D+5
- Baldwin, MD R+22
Cities with Similar Populations
- Janesville, MN R+35
- Pierceton, IN R+54
- St. Johnsville, NY R+41
- New Salisbury, IN R+50
- New Paris, OH R+59
- Grape Creek, TX R+71
- Virden, IL R+39
- Osseo, MN D+8
- Mechanicsburg, OH R+54
- Point, TX R+78
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Maryland State 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. Full methodology and findings: political spectrum map.
Methodology reviewed by the BestNeighborhood data team. Last updated May 2026.