Sherman Heights leans heavily Democratic by roughly 44 points: about 72% of voters vote Democratic and 28% Republican.
About 38% of adults in Sherman Heights typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Sherman Heights, ~27% vote Democratic, ~11% Republican, and ~62% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Sherman Heights compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Sherman Heights leans more Democratic than 20 of 34 neighbors.
Sherman Heights runs about 24 points more Democratic than California as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by block within Sherman Heights. The north side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+62) and the southwest side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+37), a spread of about 26 points.
Why Sherman Heights 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 Sherman Heights, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with many never-married adults vote Democratic. About 53% of adults in Sherman Heights have never been married, modestly above similar-sized neighborhoods (around 43%).
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Sherman Heights, San Diego, 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 Sherman Heights looks the way it does
Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Sherman Heights is in the bottom quarter nationally for routine-care measures such as insurance coverage, preventive screenings, and dental visits. The dental-visit rate here is about 49%, about 13 points below the California average of 62%. Renters vote less often than owners, and about 86% of households in Sherman Heights rent, about 61 points above the U.S. average of 25%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 32% of adults in Sherman Heights report food insecurity, above 86% of neighborhoods. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- East Village, San Diego, CA D+44
- Core, San Diego, CA D+43
- Grant Hill, San Diego, CA D+42
- Balboa Park, San Diego, CA D+58
- Marina, San Diego, CA D+45
- Cortez Hill, San Diego, CA D+50
- Bario Logan, San Diego, CA D+39
- Columbia San Diego, San Diego, CA D+37
- Little Italy, San Diego, CA D+40
- Park West, San Diego, CA D+54
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Merritt, Oakland, CA D+64
- Lakeside, San Antonio, TX D+24
- Bay Farm Island, Alameda, CA D+51
- Downtown, Washington, DC D+71
- Sunbow, Chula Vista, CA D+18
- Beaverdale, Des Moines, IA D+39
- Midway-Coldstream, Baltimore, MD D+85
- Zilker, Austin, TX D+45
- Northeast Durham, Durham, NC D+51
- Central Business District, Kansas City, MO D+51
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.