Riverside is a Democratic stronghold. About 82% of voters here vote Democratic and 18% Republican.
About 78% of adults in Riverside typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Riverside, ~64% vote Democratic, ~14% Republican, and ~22% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Riverside compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Riverside leans more Democratic than 13 of 41 neighbors.
Riverside runs about 35 points more Democratic than Maryland as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Riverside. The southeast side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+71) and the southwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+57), a spread of about 14 points.
Why Riverside 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 Riverside, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with high college attainment vote Democratic. About 81% of adults in Riverside hold a bachelor's degree, about 52 points above the U.S. average of 28%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 47% of adults in Riverside have never been married, above 77% of neighborhoods.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Riverside, Baltimore, MD sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. A walkable street grid does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban a place is.
Why turnout in Riverside looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Riverside 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 73%, about 13 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 98% of adults in Riverside have completed high school, above 84% of neighborhoods. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- Federal Hill-Montgomery, Baltimore, MD D+67
- Locust Point, Baltimore, MD D+46
- Jonestown, Baltimore, MD D+68
- Washington Village, Baltimore, MD D+75
- Downtown, Baltimore, MD D+75
- Fells Point, Baltimore, MD D+70
- Mount Vernon, Baltimore, MD D+80
- Cherry Hill, Brooklyn, MD D+82
- Oldtown, Baltimore, MD D+77
- Hopkins-Middle East, Baltimore, MD D+80
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Indiana University, Bloomington, IN D+60
- Lakeview-Bakersfield, Bakersfield, CA D+25
- Corbett-Terwilliger-Lair Hill, Portland, OR D+68
- City College Area, Long Beach, CA D+18
- East Raleigh, Raleigh, NC D+64
- Moreno Mission, San Diego, CA D+40
- Merle Hay, Des Moines, IA D+24
- Jordan, Minneapolis, MN D+63
- Downtown Elizabeth, Elizabeth, NJ D+27
- Rose Park, Salt Lake City, UT D+30
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.