Shirley is a Republican stronghold. About 22% of voters here vote Democratic and 78% Republican.
About 76% of adults in Shirley typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Shirley, ~17% vote Democratic, ~59% Republican, and ~24% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Shirley compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Shirley leans more Republican than 55 of 88 neighbors.
Shirley runs about 37 points more Republican than Indiana as a whole.
Why Shirley 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 Shirley, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Areas with a high white share and below-average college attainment vote Republican. In Shirley, about 97% of residents are non-Hispanic white, about 25 points above the U.S. average of 72%; about 16% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, about 7 points below the Indiana average of 22%. Car-dependent areas vote Republican, and about 85% of residents in Shirley drive to work alone, above 81% of cities. A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 77% of households in Shirley are family households, above 82% of cities.
Homeownership and voter turnout
Places with homeowner-heavy households tend to turn out at a higher rate; Shirley, IN sits in the top quarter nationally on this measure.
Why turnout in Shirley looks the way it does
Homeowners vote more often than renters. About 91% of households in Shirley own their home, about 9 points above the Indiana average of 82%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Kennard, IN R+55
- Wilkinson, IN R+60
- Greensboro, IN R+59
- Charlottesville, IN R+58
- Cadiz, IN R+58
- Maple Valley, IN R+60
- Willow Branch, IN R+59
- Knightstown, IN R+53
- Milners Corner, IN R+55
- Markleville, IN R+48
Cities with Similar Populations
- Ruth, MI R+53
- Mulga, AL R+52
- Granite, OK R+75
- Elkader, IA R+35
- Free Soil, MI R+33
- Kualapuu, HI D+16
- Chazy, NY R+19
- Hurleyville, NY R+15
- Pittsburg, IL R+62
- Berlin Center, OH R+48
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Indiana 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.