Stanford is a Democratic stronghold. About 82% of voters here vote Democratic and 18% Republican.
About 39% of adults in Stanford typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Stanford, ~32% vote Democratic, ~7% Republican, and ~61% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Stanford compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Stanford leans more Democratic than 71 of 72 neighbors.
Stanford runs about 44 points more Democratic than California as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Stanford. The east side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+67) and the north side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+46), a spread of about 21 points.
Why Stanford 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 Stanford, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Dense areas vote Democratic. About 96% of residents in Stanford live in densely developed areas, about 60 points above the U.S. average of 36%. High college attainment predicts Democratic voting, and Stanford sits in the top quarter (about 87%, in the top fraction of cities). A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 84% of adults in Stanford have never been married, in the top fraction of cities.
Walkability and Democratic lean
Places with a highly walkable street grid tend to lean Democratic; Stanford, 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 Stanford looks the way it does
Renters vote less often than owners. About 84% of households in Stanford rent, about 59 points above the U.S. average of 25%. Crowded housing lines up with lower turnout, and about 5% of homes in Stanford have more than one occupant per room, above 87% of cities. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Palo Alto, CA D+52
- Menlo Park, CA D+64
- Atherton, CA D+46
- East Palo Alto, CA D+49
- Portola Valley, CA D+58
- Los Altos Hills, CA D+23
- North Fair Oaks, CA D+49
- Mountain View, CA D+46
- Woodside, CA D+46
- Los Altos, CA D+40
Cities with Similar Populations
- South St. Paul, MN D+18
- Altamont, OR R+35
- Abbeville, LA R+29
- Jasper, IN R+40
- Mountlake Terrace, WA D+27
- Millersville, MD D+13
- East Peoria, IL R+23
- East Providence, RI D+12
- Hercules, CA D+46
- Buffalo, MN R+26
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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.