The city of Grand Rapids, MI is located in the 49504 zip code and is home to a politically diverse population. Many residents are passionate about their beliefs and actively participate in local politics. Grand Rapids has a long history as being an engaged community when it comes to making sure their voices are heard. Local political candidates come from all backgrounds and represent various philosophies on how to best serve the community. Their platforms focus on making sure citizens have access to jobs, proper healthcare, safe housing, and quality education. Grand Rapids also has a strong tradition of holding its elected officials accountable by holding town hall meetings where citizens can discuss topics that matter to them. These conversations help shape the future of the city for generations to come.
The political climate in Zip 49504 (Grand Rapids, MI) is leaning liberal.
Kent County, MI is leaning liberal. In Kent County, MI 51.9% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 45.8% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.3% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Kent county flipped moderately Democratic, 51.9% to 45.8%.
Kent county flipped Democratic in 2020, after voting Republican in four of the last six Presidential elections.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Zip 49504 (Grand Rapids, MI) is leaning liberal.
Grand Rapids, Michigan is leaning liberal.
Kent County, Michigan is leaning liberal.
Grand Rapids-Kentwood Metro Area is leaning conservative.
Michigan is leaning 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.
Grand Rapids, Michigan: R R d r r 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 for the Democrat and I for the Independent. 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 zip 49504 (Grand Rapids)
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 2,507 contributions totaling $200,741 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $80 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 217 contributions totaling $132,740 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $612 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)