Wheeler leans heavily Republican by roughly 32 points: about 34% of voters vote Democratic and 66% Republican.
About 70% of adults in Wheeler typically vote, above the U.S. average of about 62%. Among adults in Wheeler, ~24% vote Democratic, ~46% Republican, and ~30% don't vote. The map below shows estimated turnout by block group.
How Wheeler compares
Among cities within 25 miles, Wheeler leans more Republican than 54 of 79 neighbors.
Wheeler runs about 14 points more Republican than Indiana as a whole.
Politics vary noticeably by neighborhood within Wheeler. The southwest side is the most Republican-leaning (R+40) and the northeast side is the least Republican-leaning (R+24), a spread of about 16 points.
Why Wheeler 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 Wheeler, not a ranked or complete list of what matters most.
Car-dependent areas vote Republican. About 86% of residents in Wheeler drive to work alone, about 12 points above the U.S. average of 74%. Low college attainment predicts Republican voting, and Wheeler sits in the bottom quarter (about 15%, below 78% of cities). A high family-household share predicts Republican voting, and about 78% of households in Wheeler are family households, above 86% of cities.
Population density and Democratic lean
Places with high population density tend to lean Democratic; Wheeler, IN sits above the national average on this measure.
Why turnout in Wheeler looks the way it does
Turnout in Wheeler sits close to the national pattern. Routine healthcare access, homeownership, education, and food security all land near their national averages here. Learn more about the findings and methodology on the political spectrum map.
Nearby Cities
- Deep River, IN R+31
- Portage, IN Even
- Hobart, IN R+7
- Valparaiso, IN R+10
- New Chicago, IN R+12
- Lake Station, IN R+12
- Burns Harbor, IN R+11
- Winfield, IN R+23
- Ogden Dunes, IN D+23
- Chesterton, IN R+7
Cities with Similar Populations
- Oktaha, OK R+53
- Huguenot, NY R+34
- Bryson, TX R+81
- Horseshoe Bend, ID R+60
- Oilton, OK R+68
- Holiday Manor, FL R+22
- Powell, AL R+72
- Holiday Hills, IL R+13
- Cavalero, WA R+4
- Lyle, WA R+23
All Local Stats
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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.