Salem leans slightly Republican by roughly 10 points: about 45% of voters vote Democratic and 55% Republican.
About more than 99% of adults in Salem typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Salem, ~45% vote Democratic, ~55% Republican, and ~0% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Salem compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Salem leans more Republican than 58 of 84 neighbors.
Salem runs about 9 points more Republican than Michigan as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Salem. The northeast side is the most Republican-leaning (R+16) and the east side is the least Republican-leaning (R+4), a spread of about 12 points.
Why Salem 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 Salem, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Salem votes Republican even though it is densely developed (about 35%, above 82% of cities). State and regional patterns outweigh the Democratic lean that density usually predicts here. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 80% of households in Salem are family households, above 89% of cities.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Salem, MI sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Salem looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Salem 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 77%, about 17 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Homeowners vote more often than renters, and about 93% of households in Salem own their home, about 18 points above the U.S. average of 75%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- South Lyon, MI R+13
- Northville, MI D+6
- New Hudson, MI R+14
- Plymouth, MI D+5
- Novi, MI D+14
- Dixboro, MI D+24
- Wixom, MI D+12
- Whitmore Lake, MI R+4
- Canton, MI D+13
- Barton Hills, MI D+39
Cities with Similar Populations
- Orondo, WA R+27
- Hoboken, AL R+15
- Porter Springs, GA R+50
- Deep Gap, NC R+29
- Oglala, SD D+61
- Lone Pine, CA R+5
- Spout Spring, VA R+48
- Smackover, AR R+48
- Eaton Estates, OH R+33
- Mayville, ND R+33
All Local Stats
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Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Michigan Department 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.