West Southwest 2 leans slightly Democratic by roughly 10 points: about 55% of voters vote Democratic and 45% Republican.
About 74% of adults in West Southwest 2 typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in West Southwest 2, ~41% vote Democratic, ~33% Republican, and ~26% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How West Southwest 2 compares
Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, West Southwest 2 leans more Democratic than 1 of 4 neighbors.
West Southwest 2 runs about 25 points more Democratic than Kansas as a whole. Kansas leans Republican overall, while West Southwest 2 is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.
Politics vary noticeably by block within West Southwest 2. The east side runs the most Democratic (D+10) and the northwest side runs the most Republican (R+16), a spread of about 26 points.
Why West Southwest 2 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 West Southwest 2, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
West Southwest 2 votes against the grain of Kansas. Kansas leans Republican overall, while West Southwest 2 runs about 25 points more Democratic.
Cancer-screening access and voter turnout
Places with high colon-cancer-screening access tend to turn out at a higher rate; West Southwest 2, Topeka, KS sits in the top tenth nationally on this measure. Cancer screening does not drive turnout; it reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access.
Why turnout in West Southwest 2 looks the way it does
Areas with strong routine healthcare access turn out at higher rates. West Southwest 2 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 66%, about 6 points above the U.S. average of 60%. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Neighborhoods
- West Southwest 3, Topeka, KS D+12
- Southwest Topeka, Topeka, KS D+8
- Central Topeka 2, Topeka, KS D+22
- South Southeast 1, Topeka, KS D+22
- South Southeast 3, Topeka, KS D+7
- East Topeka, Topeka, KS D+25
- Sunset Hills, Lawrence, KS D+56
- Oread, Lawrence, KS D+65
- Prairie-Piper-KC-KS, Kansas City, KS R+7
- I-435 West KC-KS, Kansas City, KS Even
Neighborhoods with Similar Populations
- Melrose Manors, Fort Lauderdale, FL D+58
- South Westnedge, Kalamazoo, MI D+38
- Arlingwood, Jacksonville, FL R+2
- Harding, Roseville, CA D+4
- Eagle Point District, Dubuque, IA D+5
- Parkdale-Walden, Kansas City, MO D+8
- Southside, Huntington, WV D+31
- Frederickson, Tacoma, WA R+3
- Los Cerritos, Long Beach, CA D+40
- Highland Park, Pittsburgh, PA D+74
Sources and methodology
Precinct-level voting records used to fit the model come from Kansas 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.