Santa Margarita leans Republican by roughly 22 points: about 39% of voters vote Democratic and 61% Republican.
About 74% of adults in Santa Margarita typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Santa Margarita, ~29% vote Democratic, ~45% Republican, and ~26% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Santa Margarita compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Santa Margarita leans more Republican than 19 of 25 neighbors.
Santa Margarita runs about 43 points more Republican than California as a whole. California leans Democratic overall, while Santa Margarita is one of the few Republican-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Santa Margarita. The north side is the most Republican-leaning (R+34) and the west side is the least Republican-leaning (R+21), a spread of about 13 points.
Why Santa Margarita 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 Santa Margarita, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Santa Margarita votes against the grain of California. California leans Democratic overall, while Santa Margarita runs about 43 points more Republican.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; Santa Margarita, CA sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in Santa Margarita looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. Santa Margarita 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 72%, about 12 points above the U.S. average of 60%. High high-school completion lines up with higher turnout, and about 96% of adults in Santa Margarita have completed high school, above 81% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Garden Farms, CA R+22
- Pozo, CA R+27
- Creston, CA R+35
- San Luis Obispo, CA D+39
- Atascadero, CA R+7
- Halcyon, CA R+9
- Templeton, CA R+18
- Shell Beach, CA D+16
- Pismo Beach, CA D+14
- Whitley Gardens, CA R+50
Cities with Similar Populations
- Rosman, NC R+43
- Lacoste, TX R+26
- Tsaile, AZ D+62
- Pomfret, MD D+19
- Tangent, OR R+33
- Garrett Park, MD D+68
- Rose Hill, VA R+70
- Providence, TX R+63
- Ola, TX R+58
- Martinsville, IL R+61
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.