Statewide election GOP wins where the Democrat won more counties

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Perpich (DFL) won 47 counties to Carlson's (R) 40, but Carlson won.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Some of the patterns in that map are very strange...

Well it WAS 1990. Plus Perpich was from northern Minnesota and Carlson from Minneapolis. But yes, seeing Wright and Sherburne counties vote Democratic while Hennepin and Ramsey vote Republican looks quite bizarre today.

Another oddity: Houston county (the one in the southeasternmost corner.) It voted for Perpich, yet tied for Sec of State the same year. The Democratic incumbent for SoS won every other county in the state except one (Martin). So why it would vote for a losing Democrat when the rest of the region votes Republican but literally tie in a race where the Democrat is winning in a landslide is beyond me.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Regarding Minnesota, I also noticed that Mondale in 2002 won several rural counties that Gore and Kerry lost. Did Mondale lose because he had less of a margin in the largest counties?

Compare the numbers in Anoka, Dakota and Washington counties to 2000 and 2004.