South Shore, Chicago, IL Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in South Shore

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

South Shore is a Democratic stronghold. About 92% of voters here vote Democratic and 8% Republican.

 

About 50% of adults in South Shore typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in South Shore, ~46% vote Democratic, ~4% Republican, and ~50% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How South Shore compares

Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, South Shore leans more Democratic than 22 of 32 neighbors.

South Shore runs about 72 points more Democratic than Illinois as a whole.

Why South Shore 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 South Shore, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.

Areas with many never-married adults vote Democratic. About 59% of adults in South Shore have never been married, well above similar-sized neighborhoods (around 41%).

Paved land cover and Democratic lean

Places with extensive paved surfaces tend to lean Democratic; South Shore, Chicago, IL sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Paved ground does not change how people vote; it mostly reflects how urban and built-up a place is.

Why turnout in South Shore looks the way it does

Renters vote less often than owners. About 72% of households in South Shore rent, about 47 points above the U.S. average of 25%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 36% of adults in South Shore report food insecurity, above 90% of neighborhoods. High-crime urban areas turn out at lower rates, and South Shore sits in the top 15% on a violent-crime measure. 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 Illinois State Board of 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.