Raleigh is a Democratic stronghold. About 84% of voters here vote Democratic and 16% Republican.
About 50% of adults in Raleigh typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Raleigh, ~42% vote Democratic, ~8% Republican, and ~50% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Raleigh compares
Raleigh sits in a sparsely populated area with few comparable neighborhoods nearby.
Raleigh runs about 98 points more Democratic than Tennessee as a whole. Tennessee leans Republican overall, while Raleigh is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Raleigh. The northwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+79) and the east side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+51), a spread of about 28 points.
Why Raleigh 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 Raleigh, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Raleigh votes against the grain of Tennessee. Tennessee leans Republican overall, while Raleigh runs about 98 points more Democratic. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 52% of adults in Raleigh have never been married, above 84% of neighborhoods.
Preventive-care access and voter turnout
Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Raleigh, Memphis, TN sits in the bottom quarter 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 Raleigh looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Raleigh is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 47%, about 9 points below the Tennessee average of 56%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Berclair-Highland Heights, Memphis, TN D+23
- Shelby Forest-Frayser, Memphis, TN D+62
- Crosstown, Memphis, TN D+60
- Midtown-Memphis, Memphis, TN D+66
- East Memphis-Colonial-Yorkshire, Memphis, TN D+37
- Cordova-Appling, Cordova, TN D+30
- Medical District, Memphis, TN D+71
- River Oaks-Kirby-Balmoral, Memphis, TN D+30
- River Oaks, Memphis, TN D+15
- Downtown Memphis, Memphis, TN D+69
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Ozone Park, Queens, NY D+11
- Westwood, Los Angeles, CA D+50
- Coral Way, Miami, FL R+11
- Anaheim Hills, Anaheim, CA R+8
- Oxford Circle, Philadelphia, PA D+41
- Long Island City, Queens, NY D+58
- Yorkville, Manhattan, NY D+59
- Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, NY R+33
- Rogers Park, Chicago, IL D+75
- Central East Denver, Denver, CO D+62
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Tennessee Secretary of State, 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.