Santa Barbara County, CA Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Santa Barbara County

By the BestNeighborhood data science team. Last updated May 2026.

Santa Barbara County leans Democratic by roughly 26 points: about 63% of voters vote Democratic and 37% Republican.

 

About 58% of adults in Santa Barbara County typically vote, near the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Santa Barbara County, ~37% vote Democratic, ~21% Republican, and ~42% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Santa Barbara County compares

Santa Barbara County runs about 6 points more Democratic than California as a whole.

Politics vary noticeably by city within Santa Barbara County. The south side runs the most Democratic (D+50) and the northeast side runs the most Republican (R+22), a spread of about 73 points.

Why Santa Barbara County leans the way it does

This analysis examined 14,881 data points per county to find what predicts political lean and turnout. The items below are a few correlations that stood out for Santa Barbara County, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Dense areas vote Democratic. About 82% of residents in Santa Barbara County live in densely developed areas, about 46 points above the U.S. average of 36%. High college attainment predicts Democratic voting, and Santa Barbara County sits in the top quarter (about 35%, above 87% of counties). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 40% of adults in Santa Barbara County have never been married, above 93% of counties.

Walkability and Democratic lean

Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Santa Barbara County, CA 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 Santa Barbara County looks the way it does

Renters vote less often than owners. About 48% of households in Santa Barbara County rent, about 23 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Limited routine healthcare access lines up with lower turnout, and Santa Barbara County sits in the bottom quarter on routine-care measures. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 11% of homes in Santa Barbara County have more than one occupant per room, in the top fraction of counties. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.

Sources and methodology

Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from California 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.