Westside, South Bend, IN Political Map | Democrat & Republican Areas in Westside

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

Westside leans heavily Democratic by roughly 40 points: about 70% of voters vote Democratic and 30% Republican.

 

About 31% of adults in Westside typically vote, below the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Westside, ~22% vote Democratic, ~9% Republican, and ~69% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.

How Westside compares

Among neighborhoods within 5 miles, Westside leans more Democratic than 3 of 5 neighbors.

Westside runs about 60 points more Democratic than Indiana as a whole. Indiana leans Republican overall, while Westside is one of the few Democratic-leaning pockets.

Politics vary noticeably by block within Westside. The southwest side is the most Democratic-leaning (D+46) and the southeast side is the least Democratic-leaning (D+36), a spread of about 10 points.

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

Dense areas vote Democratic. More than 99% of residents in Westside live in densely developed areas, about 64 points above the U.S. average of 36%. A high never-married share predicts Democratic voting, and about 47% of adults in Westside have never been married, above 77% of neighborhoods. Westside runs against the grain of Indiana, a Democratic-leaning pocket in a Republican-leaning state.

Preventive-care access and voter turnout

Places with limited routine preventive-care access tend to turn out at a lower rate; Westside, South Bend, IN sits in the bottom tenth nationally on this measure. Dental visits do not drive turnout; the rate reflects income, insurance, and healthcare access, which line up with who votes.

Why turnout in Westside looks the way it does

Areas with limited routine healthcare access turn out at lower rates. Westside 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 37%, about 24 points below the Indiana average of 61%. High food insecurity lines up with lower turnout, and about 43% of adults in Westside report food insecurity, above 96% of neighborhoods. Low high-school completion lines up with lower turnout, and about 65% of adults in Westside have completed high school, below 97% of neighborhoods. 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 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.