Reading leans slightly Republican by roughly 8 points: about 46% of voters vote Democratic and 54% Republican.
About 66% of adults in Reading typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Reading, ~30% vote Democratic, ~36% Republican, and ~34% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Reading compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Reading leans more Republican than 40 of 146 neighbors.
Politically, Reading sits close to the rest of Ohio.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Reading. The southwest side runs the most Democratic (D+11) and the northeast side runs the most Republican (R+17), a spread of about 27 points.
Why Reading 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 Reading, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Reading votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 95%, far above the Ohio average of 34%). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here.
Paved land cover and Democratic lean
Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; Reading, OH sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.
Why turnout in Reading looks the way it does
Turnout in Reading sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Lockland, OH D+17
- Arlington Heights, OH Even
- Amberley, OH D+20
- Evendale, OH Even
- Lincoln Heights, OH D+89
- Deer Park, OH D+8
- Golf Manor, OH D+65
- Wyoming, OH D+34
- Silverton, OH D+51
- Blue Ash, OH D+10
Cities with Similar Populations
- Chester, NJ R+7
- Donaldsonville, LA D+42
- Perryton, TX R+55
- Dalhart, TX R+50
- Denison, IA R+22
- Patterson, NY R+15
- Cusseta, GA R+14
- Terry, MS R+4
- West Yarmouth, MA D+11
- La Joya, TX R+2
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Ohio 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.