Reading, MA is a small town located in Middlesex County. Though it has a population of just under 25,000 people, the politics of Reading are alive and well. The town is represented in the Massachusetts House of Representatives by Theodore C. Speliotis and in the Massachusetts Senate by Barry R. Finegold. At the local level, there are numerous political candidates for a variety of offices, including Board of Selectmen, School Committee, and Town Meeting Member positions. Each election cycle tends to bring its own unique set of issues and debates to the forefront as well as new candidates attempting to make their mark on the town's political landscape. With plenty of spirited debate among residents about local issues such as taxes, education funding, and public safety initiatives, Reading's politics can sometimes heat up but they ultimately remain focused on making sure Reading remains a safe place to live with quality services for all its residents.
The political climate in Zip 01867 (Reading, MA) is moderately liberal.
Middlesex County, MA is very liberal. In Middlesex County, MA 71.5% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 26.3% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.2% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Middlesex county remained overwhelmingly Democratic, 71.5% to 26.3%.
Middlesex county voted Democratic in every Presidential election since 2000.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Zip 01867 (Reading, MA) is moderately liberal.
Reading, Massachusetts is moderately liberal.
Middlesex County, Massachusetts is very liberal.
Boston-Cambridge-Newton Metro Area is very liberal.
Massachusetts is very 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.
Reading, Massachusetts: 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 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 01867 (Reading)
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 1,919 contributions totaling $145,251 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $76 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 229 contributions totaling $60,852 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $266 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)