Now that we’re starting up the election swing to decide not only our next President, but many other local statewide initiatives, it’s important to put into context the types of decisions that will be made in the coming years.
Who makes the decisions? Not the people getting elected. It’s the voters.
Specifically, we wanted to know which cities have the highest number of liberal voters in the Hawkeye State?
In order to do so, we turned our sites on measuring how each city in Iowa with populations greater than 5,000 voted and contributed to political campaigns in the past several years. The cities with the highest percentage of voters who voted Democrat and gave the most to liberals where named the most liberal cities in the state.
Here are the 10 most liberal places in Iowa for 2019:
If you’re wondering, Orange City is the most conservative city in Iowa of all those we measured.
And to be clear, we didn’t form this list based on our own biases — we relied on the cold hard data. For more on how we ran the numbers, keep on reading. Then we’ll take a closer look at each of our top 10 most liberal cities in Iowa.
And if you already knew these places were liberal, check out some more reading about Iowa and the most lberal places in the country:
How we determined the most liberal cities in Iowa for 2019
We started by making a list of every city in Iowa over 5,000 people based on the 2013-2017 American Community Survey (The most recent data). That left us with 79 cities and towns.
We then measured the voting record and donation data to determine which places lean the most rightward in their allegiances by:
- Percentage Of Registered Democrats
- # Of Contributions To Democrats Per Capita
- $ Amount Contributed To Democrats Per Capita
Next, we ranked each city from 1 to 79 for each of the criteria where number one was the most liberal.
The winner, Iowa City, is “The Most liberal City in Iowa For 2019”.
Let’s go through these liberal places, shall we?
The 10 Most liberal Places In Iowa For 2019
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Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city’s population at 74,398 in 2016, making it the state’s fifth-largest city. Iowa City is the county seat of Johnson County. The metropolitan area, which encompasses Johnson and Washington counties, has a population of over 164,000.
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Coralville is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is a suburb of Iowa City and part of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,907 at the 2010 census.
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North Liberty is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is a suburb of Iowa City and part of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area.
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Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, which was shortened to “Des Moines” in 1857. It is on and named after the Des Moines River, which likely was adapted from the French colonial name, Rivire des Moines, meaning “River of the Monks”. The city’s population was 203,433 as of the 2010 census. The five-county metropolitan area is ranked 89th in terms of population in the United States with 634,725 residents according to the 2016 estimate by the United States Census Bureau.
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Urbandale is a city in Polk and Dallas counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 39,463. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
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Pleasant Hill is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 8,785 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of July, 2005, Pleasant Hill has been given a US Postal code, 50327.
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Clive is a city in Dallas and Polk counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2010 Census the population is at 15,447. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clive is known for its Greenbelt Park and trail system running through the entire community. Clive serves as the axis of the western Des Moines suburbs, being located between Urbandale, Waukee and West Des Moines along the major transportation corridors of I-35, I-80 and I-235. The City of Urbandale is to the north to northwest, the City of West Des Moines is to the southeast to southwest, the City of Waukee in Dallas County is to the west.
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Altoona is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States and is a part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,541 at the 2010 census.
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Johnston is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 17,278 in the 2010 census, an increase of almost 100% from the 8,649 population in the 2000 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
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Population: 5,457
Percent Democrat: 51.7%
$ Democrat Amount Per Capita: $22.56
# Democrat Contributions Per Capita: 0.15
More on Bondurant: Data
Bondurant is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 3,860 in the 2010 census, an increase of 109% from the 1,846 population in the 2000 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Summing Up The Liberal Snowflakes in Iowa
Well there you have it, the places in Iowa that have the highest number of liberals per capita, with Iowa City ranking as the least conservative in the entire state.
If you’re curious, here are the least liberal cities in Iowa:
- Orange City
- Sioux Center
- Sheldon
For more Iowa reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Live In Iowa
- These Are The 10 Best Counties To Live In Iowa
- 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Iowa
- 10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Iowa
- These Are The 10 Best Places To Retire In Iowa
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Iowa
- 10 Safest Places In Iowa
- 10 Worst Places To Live In Iowa
