Schenectady, NY is a vibrant city with a rich history and culture. The politics in Schenectady are diverse and reflect the city’s population mix. At the local level, Schenectady is represented by City Council members elected at-large, as well as representatives from each of the five wards that make up the city. The City Council meets regularly to discuss legislation and other matters related to the running of the city. Representatives from both major political parties can be found on this council and all have an important role in making decisions for the betterment of their constituents. Additionally, Schenectady has several political action committees dedicated to furthering specific causes or issues that affect the community, such as education reform and economic development. With its diverse population and active political landscape, Schenectady embodies many of the principles that define democracy in action.
The political climate in Schenectady, NY is moderately liberal.
Schenectady County, NY is somewhat liberal. In Schenectady County, NY 56.6% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 41.0% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.5% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Schenectady county remained very strongly Democratic, 56.6% to 41.0%.
Schenectady county voted Democratic in every Presidential election since 2000.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Schenectady, NY is moderately liberal.
Schenectady County, New York is somewhat liberal.
Albany-Schenectady-Troy Metro Area is somewhat liberal.
New York is moderately liberal.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Schenectady, New York: D d D D d D
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D if the Democratic Party candidate won and I if the Independent Party candidate won. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Schenectady, NY
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 8,274 contributions totaling $595,755 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $72 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 992 contributions totaling $277,575 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $280 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)