Describe your county's political/demographic history
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All Along The Watchtower
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« on: March 10, 2014, 06:31:48 PM »

In this thread, feel free to describe your county (or foreign equivalent Tongue ) in terms of its voting patterns, political geography, demographic history, settlement patterns, local culture, and so on and so forth, in as much detail as you want!

Also, feel free to respond to others, ask questions, comment on other posts, etc.

I will describe my county (Santa Clara in CA) in a long effortpost that will hopefully appear by the end of the week-but don't wait for me, if you are ready to share your post! Smiley

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Heimdal
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« Reply #1 on: March 11, 2014, 11:35:27 AM »

My «county» is the borough of Frogner in Oslo. Frogner is situated in the western part of the city.



There are approximately 53 000 people living in the borough as of 2014. The housing consists of apartment buildings in the eastern parts of the borough. A lot of these buildings were built during the late 19th century and the early 20th century. To the west there are fewer apartment buildings, and more villas and detached houses.





Politics
Frogner is a stronghold for Høyre (the main party of the center-right in Norway). Frogner have mostly voted the same way since the late 19th century. The high degree of support for the right in the borough must be understood in the context of the boroughs demographics. There aren’t that many non-western immigrants residing here. Adding to that, there are a lot of white collar workers and professionals living here (and they usually vote for parties on the right).

In the parliamentary election in September 2013, the results were as following.

Høyre:  42, 5 %
AP: 19, 3 %
V: 10, 6 %
FrP: 10, 6 %
MDG: 5, 9 %
SV: 5, 1 %
KrF: 2, 2 %
R: 2. 2 %

The center-right received almost 66% of the vote in the borough. There are other boroughs in the city where the right does even better, but those are more suburban.
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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
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« Reply #2 on: March 11, 2014, 04:40:52 PM »

In 1786, Lexington County was formed as one four counties in the Orangeburg Judicial District (the others being Winton, Orange, and Lewisburg.  In 1791, the four counties in Orangeburg were dissolved with local government consolidated for the whole district. In 1801, those districts that had retained counties as subdivisions were split up with each former county becoming a judicial district of its own.  In 1804 Lexington District was formed from Orangeburg District on roughly the same boundaries as the short-lived 1786 county. In 1832, a portion of Orangeburg between the forks of the Edisto was added to Lexington as its westernmost portion. In 1868, the judicial districts were reorganized as counties, but it was not long before the new country shrank. In 1871, the land between the Edisto forks became the northeastern part of the newly formed Aiken County. 1908 saw Lexington County shrink further and assume its current shape as Calhoun County was formed from Orangeburg and Lexington Counties and it was around this time that portions of northern Lexington County were transferred to Newberry and Richland Counties.  (Originally all of the Dutch Fork area was part of Lexington County.)

Lexington County was settled in colonial times by German immigrants, which accounts for the fairly high number of Lutherans and Lutheran churches in the area compared to both the rest of South Carolina and the South as a whole.  The northern part of the county was characterized by small farms with larger plantations being found south of the sand hills that formed the fall line separating the piedmont from the low country.  (US 1 is a good approximation of the dividing line.)

Lexington County was largely a rural county with the exceptions of the towns along the railroad tracks. West Columbia (formerly Brookland) and Cayce were opposite Columbia and had mills and quarries.  Lexington had mills and the county seat. Batesburg and Leesville had mills and a number of major politicians who called the twin cities home, including George Bell Timmerman, Jr. (August 11, 1912 – November 29, 1994) the 105th Governor of South Carolina, from 1955 to 1959.  (And until the election of Nikki Haley, the only governor to hail from Lexington County.)

However, since World War II, Lexington County has experienced unending population growth as the suburbs of Columbia with a population today that is eight times what it was in 1940. It is overwhelmingly white and overwhelmingly Republican in character.  The demographics in 2010 were 77.0% White, 14.1% Black, 5.5% Hispanic, 1.4% Asian, 2.0% Other. Since 1971 it has been the residence of the 2nd District Congressman, first Floyd Spence and then Joe Wilson.

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Dave from Michigan
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« Reply #3 on: March 11, 2014, 06:53:41 PM »

Wayne county Michigan population 1.82 million. Largest county in Michigan and home to the largest city in Michigan, Detroit. A large and diverse county, very Democratic, Obama won almost 73% of the vote in 2012 although the Democratic vote is much higher in the city of Detroit, 97%, vs the suburbs which many are under 60% for Obama. Romney won several areas in the northwest area of Wayne county, including Livonia, Plymouth township, and Northville township also probably some of the Grosse Pointes but I don't feel like looking it up right now. Detroit is over 80% black the county as a whole is 52% white and 41.5% black, the black population is falling due to blacks leaving Detroit and moving to Oakland county. Obviously the city of Detroit has experienced massive population loss over the last 60 years. Historically here has been a very big racial divide with the suburbs being 90% plus white and the city 80%+ black. The last 10 years has seen a lot of black people moving to the suburbs of Wayne county, Westland, Wayne, Romulus, And Redford have from 15 to 35% black populations. A few others have around 10% including Canton, Michigan which also has a high Asian population, 18%. Dearborn Michigan is known for its Arab population about 40% of Dearborn's population.

Politically the northwest cities and townships are the most Republican areas. Mostly Livonia, Plymouth (my hometown), Plymouth township, Northville, and Northville township. These areas send Republicans to most offices and vote Republican for president. Thaddeus McCotter represented this area in congress along with a chunk of Oakland. The rest of the suburban Wayne county is more blue collar working class especially downriver area. The Grosse Pointes along the Detroit river in the northeast corner are a affluent group of small cities and known as a the well off part of town.

This is what I got for now, feel free to ask questions if you want.
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RedSLC
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« Reply #4 on: March 11, 2014, 07:33:12 PM »

My home county is Salt Lake County, Utah. Currently at 1 million residents and growing. The largest in the state, and one of the largest in the country.

Despite going for Romney by 20 points in 2012, the county itself is somewhat of a swing county when compared to other counties in Utah, narrowly voting for Obama in 2008, and having its local-level offices evenly split between the few parties.

Politically, it can be divided into three areas:

-Salt Lake City proper: My hometown, and the most democratic part of the county. Voted 69% for Obama in 2008 (and probably low 60's for Obama in 2012), and has a near-100 percent democratic delegation in the legislature (the one republican representing part of the city represents a district based primarily in Davis County, and actually lost the district's portion of SLC when he last ran.)
Has a fairly large Hispanic population (around 20 to 25 percent), as well as a large percentage of white democratic voters (Obama won the white vote here in 2008 and probably 2012, though I can't be sure), which may be because the city itself also has a large LGBT population. Despite popular perception, less than half of the city's population is Mormon today, with many having left for the ever-growing suburbs and exurbs.

-The inner-ring suburbs: I'd define this region as the suburbs of West Valley City, Kearns, Taylorsville, Millcreek, Midvale, Murray, Cottonwood Heights, Holladay, and South Salt Lake. They have moderate Hispanic population levels, and republican-leaning (though not as much as the rest of the state) white voters. This region acts as a swing region for the county, and winning here is pretty much required for those hoping to win in the county. Obama won most of these in 2008, but many of them by narrow margins, with Romney probably winning most of them in 2012. At the legislature level, they mainly elect republicans, but elect a handful of democrats as well.

-The outer-ring suburbs: The southernmost suburbs, consisting of Sandy, Draper, West Jordan, South Jordan, Riverton, Herriman, and Bluffdale. This part of the county is solidly republican, due to the lack of significant minority populations and even more republican white voters. Both McCain and Romney won every major suburb in this area, and the area has an all-republican delegation in the legislature.
My fellow Utahn Zioneer is from this region.
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ElectionsGuy
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« Reply #5 on: March 13, 2014, 04:33:44 PM »

I'm not going to do a whole formal essay, but I'll do a paragraph or so description...

Waukesha County, WI: Known as the most powerful republican county in Wisconsin and probably one of the most in the nation (6th in republican vote margins!). It is the reason Wisconsin usually stays in play much of the time. Many elements make it so powerful, such as probably one of the highest turnouts in the nation, probably upwards of 80% VAP. The population is 389,891. In the 2012 presidential election, and 243,856 votes were cast, which is 5/8 of the population voting alone, which doesn't exempt people under 18 and criminal restrictions. Its nearly untouchable 2:1 % margin also makes it the most republican county in the state besides its neighbor to the north, Washington County. Its trended republican in recent years as well. This is the one area republicans can count one for big margins and their base vote. Three suburban/exurban Milwaukee counties in particular are D-proof, and that would be the Waukesha-Washington-Ozaukee group. Here are some recent elections to give you an idea:

2012 President:


Romney (R): 162,798 (66.8%)
Obama (D): 78,779 (32.3%)

2012 Senate:

Thompson (R): 159,450 (66.4%)
Baldwin (D): 75,408 (31.4%)

2012 Governor (Recall)Sad

Walker (R): 154,316 (72.3%)
Barrett (D): 58,234 (27.3%)

2010 Senate:


Johnson (R): 134,051 (71.0%)
Feingold (D): 53,492 (28.3%)

2010 Governor:


Walker (R): 134,608 (71.5%)
Barrett (D): 52,684 (28.0%)

2008 President:


McCain (R): 145,152 (62.3%)
Obama (D): 85,339 (36.6%)


And here's a screenshot from Dave's App (2008 President):



(Keep in mind this is 2008, so things would usually be even more republican than this). And yes, McCain won Waukesha (with only 53%, Romney got 57%).

As for other statistics. Its 90% white, has a median income of $75,689 (upper class), and only 5% live below the "poverty line" (compared to 12.5% for Wisconsin overall). Its also very well educated, as 39% have a bachelor degree, and 96% graduated high school. Overall, this county is what you would call an elitist republican stronghold county.
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old timey villain
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« Reply #6 on: March 14, 2014, 05:48:03 PM »

Clarke County, GA. Not born here but I've lived here for the past 6 years and consider it my home. The county is home to Athens, GA which is home to the University of Georgia. Because it's a college town, Athens is more diverse and liberal than the rest of the state, especially the surrounding area. Most people see it as an island of (non atlas) blue in a sea of (non atlas) red. It wasn't always so far left though. UGA used to be your typical southern school more like Auburn, Alabama and Ole Miss. It wasn't integrated until the early 60s and even after that it remained pretty "old south." That changed around the 80s though when the Athens music scene took off. Bands like REM and the B52s really took off around that time and Athens gained a reputation as great music city, attracting more artsy, liberal residents and students. You can see the change in election results. Clarke goes quickly moves to the left of Georgia in the 80s and 90s. I'll start with 1984 since the favorite son effect wears off by then in GA.

1984
Clarke: 53% Reagan 47% Mondale
Georgia: 60% Reagan 40% Mondale

1988
Clarke: 48% Bush 48% Dukakis (Dukakis wins by 4 votes)
Georgia: 59% Bush 40% Dukakis

1992
Clarke: 42% Bush 43% Clinton
Georgia: 36% Bush 53% Clinton

1996
Clarke: 56% Clinton 38% Dole
Georgia: 46% Clinton 47% Dole

2000
Clarke: 52% Gore 41% Bush
Georgia: 55% Bush 43% Gore

2004
Clarke: 58% Kerry 40% Bush (almost a total flip from statewide margin)
Georgia: 58% Bush 41% Kerry

2008
Clarke: 65% Obama 34% McCain
Georgia: 52% McCain 47% Obama

2012
Clarke: 63% Obama 34% Romney
Georgia: 53% McCain 45% Obama


So since 1984 Clarke has gone from being 14 points more D than the state to 27 points more D in 2012
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smoltchanov
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« Reply #7 on: March 15, 2014, 12:34:06 AM »

Moscow, Russia. Is any more detalization needed?
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jimrtex
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« Reply #8 on: March 15, 2014, 01:14:19 PM »

Moscow, Russia. Is any more detalization needed?
What about your administrative okrug, or district (raion).  Looking at population, the districts would be equivalent to counties in many states.  But perhaps not in a city of that population.  New York City has the 5 boroughs, which are also counties.
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HAnnA MArin County
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« Reply #9 on: March 16, 2014, 03:37:28 AM »
« Edited: March 16, 2014, 04:05:50 AM by Hillary/Rendell 2016 »

HISTORY
Bollinger County is located in the southeastern quadrant of the state of Missouri directly west of Cape Girardeau County, the commercial hub of Southeast Missouri. A largely rural county, it was named in honor of George Frederick Bollinger, a pioneer settler who persuaded 20 other families to leave North Carolina in the fall of 1799 and settle in a region immediately west of what is now Cape Girardeau. To acquire the land, Bollinger first had to sign off a document asserting that he and his fellow settlers were all Catholics; in reality, most of the group were members of the German Reformed Church and none were actually Catholic. However, Don Louis Lorimier, the Spanish Land Commandant of Cape Girardeau, was so impressed by Bollinger on an earlier visit that he decided to bend the rules for him and his fellow settlers who eventually settled into what is now Bollinger County. (Fredericktown, the county seat of adjacent Madison County, is also named after him.) These families of settlers had all immigrated from Germany in the early 18th century and later migrated down the Shenandoah Valley into North Carolina by the late 18th century.

The county also has a significant Native American history. While Native Americans constitute less than 1 percent of the county’s current population, the Osage Tribe was the major Native American influence at the time of European settlement into the county. By the 1830s, most of the Native Americans were displaced by white settlers. One of the Cherokee Trail of Tears routes passed through Sedgewickville in the northern section of the county while another route passed through Glennon in the central part of the county and Zalma in the southern portion of the county.

During the U.S. Civil War, both Union and Confederate troops moved through Bollinger County regularly. The sentiment of much of the county’s population was with the South, making its residents particularly vulnerable to attacks by Union soldiers. Dallas (now Marble Hill), the largest town in the county that also serves as the county seat, was the frequent destination of units from both sides. Passing armies and roving guerrilla bands ravished the countryside and slaughtered livestock for food, stripped fields of corn, and often burned farms.

DEMOGRAPHICS
According to the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) County Membership Report (2010), most residents (60.66%) in Bollinger County do not adhere to a religion; among those (39.34%) who do adhere to a religion, the main religious families are Baptists (44.74%), Catholics (25.19%), Methodists (14.76%), Nondenominational Protestants (7.59%), and Lutherans (4.21%). Most, if not all, of the county’s Catholic presence is concentrated in the unincorporated community of Leopold, named after The Pope. There are only two Catholic churches in Bollinger County: St. John’s Catholic Church in Leopold and St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Glennon. Protestant churches, many of which are Baptist and Methodist, are widespread throughout the rest of the county.

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, racial demographics of the county were 97.92% White/Caucasian, 0.84% Biracial/Multiracial, 0.79% Hispanic/Latino, 0.62% Native American/Alaskan Native, 0.26% Black/African American, 0.21% Asian, 0.15% Other Races, and 0.00% Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian.

It is also a male-majority county, albeit barely with 50.04% being men and 49.96% women.  

POLITICAL CULTURE
Despite its Southern sympathies during the Civil War, the county has been staunchly Republican in terms of its political leanings. Jimmy Carter was the last Democrat to carry the county in a presidential election in 1976. The county is slightly less Republican at the state level, but not by much, as Mel Carnahan was the last Democrat to win the county in a gubernatorial election in 1996. No Democrat running in a statewide election has carried Bollinger County in the 21st century. At the local level, Democrats only hold two of the county’s 14 elected offices. In the Missouri General Assembly, the county is represented in the House of Representatives by Shelley Keeney (who is actually a distant cousin of mine, but I did not vote for her Smiley) and in the Senate by Wayne Wallingford, both of whom are Republicans.

• In 2004, Bollinger County voters banned marriage equality with 88.78 percent of the vote — one of the highest margins in the state.

• In 2006, 67.72 percent of Bollinger County voted against legalizing embryonic stem cell research at the same time as 66.71 percent voted to increase the minimum wage.  

2012 Presidential Election
Bollinger: Mitt Romney 75.05% — Barack Obama 22.24% = R+ 52.81 (Swing R+ 13.36)
Missouri: Mitt Romney 53.64% — Barack Obama 44.28% = R+ 9.36 (Swing R+ 9.23)

2008 Presidential Election
Bollinger: John McCain 68.67% — Barack Obama 29.22% = R+ 39.45 (Swing D+ 0.38)   
Missouri: John McCain 49.36% — Barack Obama 49.23% = R+ 0.13 (Swing D+ 7.07)

2004 Presidential Election
Bollinger: George W. Bush 69.58% — John Kerry 29.75% = R+ 39.83 (Swing R+ 5.92)
Missouri: George W. Bush 53.30% — John Kerry 46.10% = R+ 7.20 (Swing R+ 3.86)

2000 Presidential Election
Bollinger: George W. Bush 65.87% — Al Gore 31.96% = R+ 33.91 (Swing R+ 26.46)
Missouri: George W. Bush 50.42% — Al Gore 47.08% = R+ 3.34 (Swing R+ 9.64)

1996 Presidential Election
Bollinger: Bob Dole 47.95% — Bill Clinton 40.50% — Ross Perot 10.03% = R+ 7.45 (Swing R+ 4.86)
Missouri: Bill Clinton 47.54% — Bob Dole 41.24% — Ross Perot 10.06% = D+ 6.30 (Swing R+ 3.85)

1992 Presidential Election
Bollinger: George H.W. Bush 42.68% — Bill Clinton 40.09% — Ross Perot 16.95% = R+ 2.59 
Missouri: Bill Clinton 44.07% — George H.W. Bush 33.92% — Ross Perot 21.69% = D+ 10.15   
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Smash255
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« Reply #10 on: March 16, 2014, 02:25:33 PM »

Nassau County, NT.  Just to the east of NYC, as it borders Queens.  It was mostly farmland until WW2, but grew rapidly after that as it was one of the first suburbs. 

The county has a high population density - 4,705 people /sq mile, and the highest of any county in the country that doesn't have a major city in it (with the exception of Arlington which is a city/county)

Nassau county is fairly diverse, though some areas of the county are anything but.  The Asian population almost doubled between 2000 and 2010
65.5% Non-Hispanic white
14.6% Hispanic
11.1% African American
7.6% Asian

Median Household Income $97,049

Politically the county was quite Republican for a long time.  From 1916 to 1988 the GOP Presidential candidate won it every time with the exception of LBJ's 64 landslide.  Nassau hasn't gone Republican since as it swung rapidly Democratic during the 90's like many other counties in the region.  It did backtrack quite a bit after the 2000 election in which it seemed to max out and has leveled off since then, basically a lean Dem county at this point.  Locally the county is a bit of a mixed bag, though the state Senate is Republican.  Ideology wise the county is generally socially liberal and fiscally moderate.  Property taxes tend to be a major issue as property taxes are among the highest in the country and in most cases over $10,000 a year.
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smoltchanov
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« Reply #11 on: March 17, 2014, 06:14:53 AM »

Moscow, Russia. Is any more detalization needed?
What about your administrative okrug, or district (raion).  Looking at population, the districts would be equivalent to counties in many states.  But perhaps not in a city of that population.  New York City has the 5 boroughs, which are also counties.

South_Western. About 1+ million people officially. Probably - closer to 1.5 millions unofficially
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Del Tachi
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« Reply #12 on: March 17, 2014, 04:40:46 PM »

https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=170323.msg3707666#msg3707666

Here's a pretty detailed analysis of voting coalitions in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi - an SEC college town and probably the most socially liberal place in Mississippi.
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Tender Branson
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« Reply #13 on: March 18, 2014, 03:27:48 PM »

District of Zell am See (located in the Austrian state of Salzburg) - also known as the "Pinzgau"Sad





Area: 2.642 km²

Population: 85.000

Population growth: about 0.2-0.5% each year (big birth surplus, big domestic outmigration, some international immigration surplus)

Density: 32/km²

Highest Mountain: 3.674 meters (Großvenediger)

Percentage of foreigners: 11.2% (4% former Yugoslavs, 3% Germans, 2% "other EU + Switzerland and Norway", 1% Turks, 1% "non-EU")

Age structure: 0-14 years: 15%, 15-64 years: 68%, 65+ years: 17%

Employment percentage: 75.5% of the total population

Capital: Zell am See (10.000 inhabitants)

Largest City: Saalfelden (17.000 inhabitants)

GDP/capita: 34.500€

...

Elections:

2013 Federal Election

27.1% ÖVP (Christian Conservatives) - Austria: 24.0%
27.0% SPÖ (Social Democrats) - Austria: 26.8%
23.1% FPÖ (Far Right Nationalists) - Austria: 20.5%
10.0% Greens (Left Wing Ecologists) - Austria: 12.4%
  5.8% TS (Business-oriented troll party) - Austria: 5.7%
  3.4% NEOS (Liberal Progressive, Business-oriented) - Austria: 5.0%
  2.7% BZÖ (Right-liberal) - Austria: 3.5%
  0.6% Pirates (Internet-oriented, progressive) - Austria: 0.8%
  0.3% Communists (Far Left) - Austria: 1.0%

Turnout: 75.2% - Austria: 74.9%

...

2013 Military Draft Referendum:

59% keep the draft
41% abolish the draft (highest percentage to abolish the draft in any Western Austrian district)

...

2013 State Election:

28.9% ÖVP
26.6% SPÖ
20.3% FPÖ
13.9% Greens
  9.1% TS
  1.4% Pirates

...

2010 President:

78.9% Fischer (SPÖ) - Austria: 79.3%
15.8% Rosenkranz (FPÖ) - Austria: 15.2%
  5.3% Gehring (CPÖ) - Austria: 5.4%


...

Landscape:

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Mr. Illini
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« Reply #14 on: March 20, 2014, 12:24:52 PM »

My home county is Lake County, IL.



Lake County is one of the "collar counties" to Chicago's Cook County. It encompasses much of Chicago's northern and some northwest suburbs. In the southeastern portion of the county lies the northern half of Chicago's North Shore, a line of wealthy, white, heavily-Jewish suburbs along the Lake Michigan shores. Some wealthy towns also sit inland in south-central Lake County, such as Libertyville, Vernon Hills, and Lincolnshire. In the northeastern half sits the City of Waukegan, a large, historic, Hispanic-heavy suburb. Great Lakes Naval Base also sits near there. In the south and northwestern portions of the county are predominately white, middle class, northwestern suburbs such as Lake Zurich, Wauconda, Lake Villa, and Antioch.

Lake County does and has for a long time held the reputation of being a swing county. The area along Lake Michigan shores tends to be very liberal, with wealthy liberal towns along the southeastern shore and minority-heavy towns along the northeastern shore. The exception to this is Lake Forest, a more old-school, traditional type of wealthy town, which votes heavily Republican. Inland, Lincolnshire and Vernon Hills lean Democrat as rapidly-developing, fairly wealthy areas, while Libertyville, a historic town that preexists much of the county, is Republican. Grayslake, Round Lake and Mundelein, tend to be more Democratic middle-class towns while Lake Zurich, Wauconda, and Lake Villa lean to the right.

Voting trends of the county has changed in the last few decades as the parties themselves change. One long-term trend that is evident is that Lake County is more Democrat-voting than western-suburban DuPage and McHenry Counties, long-time Republican-voting suburbs.

In Presidential elections, Lake County has almost always been a Republican-leaning swing county. Lake County voted for Johnson in '64, strongly for Nixon, Reagan, and Bush, for Clinton, narrowly for Bush in '00, more convincingly in '04, and then twice for Obama.

Last 5:

2012 President

Barack Obama (D) 53%
Mitt Romney (R) 45%

2008 President

Barack Obama (D) 59%
John McCain (R) 40%

2004 President

George Bush (R) 51%
John Kerry (D) 49%

2000 President

George Bush (R) 50%
Al Gore 48%

1996 President

Bill Clinton (D) over Robert Dole (R)

On the state level, Lake County is similarly swingy. The county voted Republican for Governor in 1998 and 2002 along with the rest of the suburbs, but for Blagojevich in 2006. Like most of the state, it swing back to the Republicans in 2010.

Last 5:

2010 Governor

Brady (R) 50%
Quinn (D) 42%

2006 Governor

Blagojevich (D) 46%
Topinka (R) 42%

2002 Governor

Ryan (R) 53%
Blagojevich (D) 44%

1998 Governor

Ryan (R) over Poshard (D)

1994 Governor

Edgar (R) over Netsch (D)

Lake County has been trending Democrat in recent years. This is, by my analysis, is a result of the strong moderate Republican presence along the North Shore and their frustration with the modern GOP and the Tea Party. This is consistent with many suburbs across the country, and has been even more noticeable here.
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Bojack Horseman
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« Reply #15 on: March 20, 2014, 12:33:55 PM »

Where I'm from (Oakland County, MI)



Where I live now (Kalamazoo, MI)

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Cranberry
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« Reply #16 on: March 20, 2014, 01:19:58 PM »

Bezirk Imst - District of Imst; Tirol:



Area: 1,724.82 sqkm

Population: 57,236

Capital: Imst (9,552)

Density: 33/sqkm

Economical situation: Most people are employed in tourism, as many parts of the district are high alpine, and the district is home to the well known ski resort of Sölden (usually, here is the first Ski Alpine World Cup race of the season, in late October). The capital, Imst, is home to many industrial companies, and especially in the eastern parts many people drive to work to the nearby capital city of the state of Tirol, Innsbruck.

Politics: The district of Imst is strongly in favour of the center-right ÖVP. Many people are self styled conservatives, and in the last federal election, all but one of the 24 municipalities voted for the ÖVP. (One, the one I live in, voted for the center-left SPÖ) Most municipalities also have a ÖVP mayor, and the ÖVP usually achieves percentages over forty, which is quite uncommon in Austria. In every federal and state election so far, the ÖVP has been the strongest party.

Images:

Imst, the capital:


The ski resort town of Sölden:

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Mr. Illini
liberty142
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« Reply #17 on: March 20, 2014, 04:32:16 PM »
« Edited: March 20, 2014, 04:35:05 PM by Illini142 »

The county where I go to school is Champaign County, IL



Champaign County is a large, rectangular county in East Central Illinois. Surrounded by (and including some of) the most conservative area of the state, Champaign is often a Democrat island surrounded by deep Republican counties. Champaign County is home to Champaign-Urbana, a micro-urban community of about 140,000. The heart of the community is the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the state's flagship university. The university accounts for a good portion of employment in the area; outside of that the community is primarily manufacturing. The cities lack suburbs because of their size and also the nature of the cities economies. Savoy, however, is a small town just to the south that acts as a sort of suburb. Rantoul, a town of 13,000, is also in the county. Outside of the four towns mentioned, there exists a few small towns and much farmland.

Politically, Champaign-Urbana is Democrat-voting. The university is predictably Democrat, and much of the remainder of the community is working-class, often minority, micro-urban Democrat. Urbana is notoriously more liberal than Champaign, and parts of Champaign away from Urbana are much more likely to vote Republican than similarly placed parts of Urbana. Rantoul is also a Democrat-voting area. Outside of these areas, the county is acts as the counties around it - very heavily Republican. The county could be considered generally a likely-Democrat county in most elections, with the remainder being situations in which the rural Republican vote plus a wave of Champaign Republican voters can tip the county in elections that favor the Republican state-wide. The county has become increasingly Democrat in recent years.

It is not unusual for Champaign County to be the only Democrat-voting county in many miles, even with other micro-urban communities nearby (such as Bloomington-Normal and Springfield), as those have also trended R. Champaign County is considered to be the most liberal county in central Illinois, and Champaign-Urbana is considered to be the most liberal area in the central portion of the state.

For President, the county has not voted for a Republican since 1988, when it cast its ballot for George Bush.

Last 5 President:

2012 President

Barack Obama (D) 53%
Mitt Romney (R) 45%

2008 President

Barack Obama (D) 58%
Mitt Romney 40%

2004 President

John Kerry (D) 50%
George Bush (R) 48%

2000 President

Al Gore (D) 48%
George Bush (R) 47%

1996 President

Bill Clinton (D) over Robert Dole (R)

For state-wide elections, this county is more likely to vote Republican. This is likely due to smaller turnout in non-Presidential elections from U of I students.

Last 5 Governor:

2010 Governor

Bill Brady (R) 55%
Pat Quinn (D) 39%

2006 Governor

Judy Baar Topinka (R) 53%
Rod Blagojevich (D) 29%
Rich Whitney (G) 17%

2002 Governor

George Ryan (R) 52%
Rod Blagojevich (D) 44%

1998 Governor

George Ryan (R) over Glenn Poshard (D)

1994 Governor

Jim Edgar (R) over Dawn Netsch
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Linus Van Pelt
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« Reply #18 on: March 20, 2014, 08:20:02 PM »

Champaign county is actually remarkably conservative for a midwestern university county, as is McLean; similarly with Sangammon for a state capital.
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Chunk Yogurt for President!
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« Reply #19 on: March 22, 2014, 12:23:49 PM »

Living in the suburbs of Louisville, my county has not voted for a Democrat since 1964 (but then again, everyone voted Democrat that year).
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publicunofficial
angryGreatness
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« Reply #20 on: March 23, 2014, 03:52:02 AM »
« Edited: March 23, 2014, 04:00:04 AM by angryGreatness »

My county is Challam County, Washington




Challam County is situated at the top of the Olympic Peninsula. It's a largely rural county, with a few small cities throughout the county. It's population is 71,404. It's 87% White (5.1% Hispanic), 5.1% Native American, 1.4% Asian, and less than 1% for every other race.


The county began to be settled by White settlers in 1851, and the county was formed in 1854. The word "Challam" comes from the Klallam tribe, and means "the strong people". For decades, logging and the timber trade was the main employer in the county, and is still a major employer today.


The major areas of the county are as follows:

-Port Angeles (Pop. 19,056) - The county seat, Port Angeles is a fairly large city. A major port for international trade, as well as a ferry between the city and Vancouver Island. It's also a fairly industrial city, with several mills and manufacturing plants located on the edge of the city. There's also a Coast Guard base located here. The city has had a hard time economically lately, and a drive downtown will reveal many empty storefronts.

-Sequim (Pop. 6,624) - My hometown, Sequim is a smaller city, but it's undergone rapid growth over the past decade. While it's mainly a rural area, with a heavy emphasis on farming (The city is where much of America's lavender is grown), it's mild climate and relative dryness (Compared to the rest of western Washington) have made it a major retirement area. As such, urban sprawl is slowly replacing much of the farmland.

-Forks (Pop. 3,692) - A small town that revolves almost entirely around the timber industry. Recent declines in the timber industry have taken it's toll, and the city has seen better days. The local correctional facilities employees many people, as does the recent boom in tourism brought by fans of the Twilight series, as the novel and film are set here.


Politically, the area is very competitive. Both parties have very high floors in the area. Republicans are aided by rural voters, retirees, and loggers who are wary of pro-environment Democrats. Democrats are aided by the Native American population, urban voters in Port Angeles and Sequim, working class people, and a surprisingly strong environmentalist presence (Olympic National Park tends to attract many "tree-hugger"-ish types). These competing groups have made the county slightly more Republican than the state, but still competitive enough to act as a bellweather of sorts. Challam County has voted for the winner in every Presidential election since 1980.


The 2008 Election Map, from DRA:



President

2012
Obama - 48.40%
Romney - 48.03%

2008
Obama - 50.55%
McCain - 47.25%

2004
Bush - 51.33%
Kerry - 46.37%

2000
Bush - 50.42%
Gore - 42.75%

1996
Clinton - 42.6%
Dole - 42.1%
Perot - 10.8%

The county has voted Republican the last few Governor races, with the exception of Gary Locke's landslide in 2000, as state Republicans tend to outperform national candidates by quite a bit in Washington.

Governor

2012
Rob McKenna - 53.34%
Jay Inslee - 46.66%

2008
Dino Rossi - 50.58%
Christine Gregoire - 49.42%

2004
Dino Rossi - 52.34%
Christine Gregoire - 45.10%

2000
Gary Locke - 53.93%
John Carlson - 43.43%

1996
Ellen Craswell - 50.7%
Gary Locke - 49.3%


Despite it's competitive nature. Democrats do very well locally, although they are often Blue Dog types. The County Commission is made up of one Republican, one Democrat, and one Republican-turned-Independent. The State Reps. for the area, Kevin Van Wege and Steve Tharinger, are both Democrats from Sequim and are very popular in the area.
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TJ in Oregon
TJ in Cleve
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« Reply #21 on: March 23, 2014, 01:57:13 PM »

Dane County, Wisconsin



Dane County was founded in 1836, shortly after Federal Judge James Doty successfully convinced the Wisconsin territorial legislature to select it as the permanent location of the future state capital. Doty convinced them to select a narrow strip of land between two large inland lakes, making Dane County’s seat and major city, Madison, one of very few cities in the world built on an isthmus. Madison’s unique geography and beautiful scenery make it a city like no other.


Much of south-central Wisconsin had significant settlement by German '48-ers, who had attempted a failed left-wing revolution before immigrating to the US. Wisconsin as a whole, and the Madison area in particular, was a bastion of the late 1800s/early 1900s Progressive movement. Dane County's own Robert La Follette was one of the foremost members of the Progressive Party.

During the 1960s, Madison was home to numerous (and occasionally violent) anti-war protests. Most notable were the bombing of Sterling Hall, where research was being done for the US Army and the Mifflin Street Block Party, which is still an annual occurrence today (though it is an undergrad festival of debauchery rather than a political protest at this point). Madison retains a  countercultural scene that permeates through much of the isthmus. More recently, Madison was host to massive protests against the union reform act passed by the Republican state legislature and signed by Gov. Scott Walker in 2011. Smaller versions of this protest still occur on close to a daily basis known as the Solidarity Sing-Along. Madison is also home to the Freedom from Religion Foundation.

Dane County is considered to be very liberal and accordingly the Democrats win by large margins. Republican Governor Lee Dreyfus called Madison "77 square miles surrounded by reality" when campaigning in 1978 and the phrase has stuck (though no one can ever seem to keep the number of square miles straight). Despite Wisconsin being a Democratic-leaning state, Dane County has a certain reputation of otherness that more conservative Democrats from elsewhere in the state are often loath to identify with. Wisconsin Republicans tend to view Dane County as something of a posterchild for reckless debauchery, new age drivel, and out-of-control government spending. All of that being said, most Dane County residents simply self-identify with liberalism and progressivism often without really understanding what they mean. Despite a slow reduction in activism in recent years, the union protests nonwithstanding,  American progressivism as an identity is generally wrapped with the act of in living in Madison. Madison is slowly growing less activist and more akin to most upper-class liberal parts of the country.

Dane County used to be more less Democratic with Madison itself as a Democratic bastion but somewhat more conservative suburbs. Over the last couple decades, the suburbs have moved significantly leftward.

President:
2000:
Gore 61.15%
Bush 32.56%
Nader 5.60%

2004:
Kerry 66.02%
Bush 32.95%

2008:
Obama 72.80%
McCain 25.82%

2012:
Obama 71.03%
Romney 27.50%

Governor:
2006:
Doyle  69.95%
Green 27.25%

2010:
Barrett 67.96%
Walker 30.98%

2012 Recall:
Barrett 69.07%
Walker 30.38%
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Chunk Yogurt for President!
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« Reply #22 on: March 23, 2014, 02:33:07 PM »

@angryGreatness, you live in one of the most beautiful areas in America.  Definitely my favorite place out West.
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publicunofficial
angryGreatness
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« Reply #23 on: March 23, 2014, 04:07:51 PM »

@angryGreatness, you live in one of the most beautiful areas in America.  Definitely my favorite place out West.


Thank you! I also think it's a very beautiful area.
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Matty
boshembechle
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« Reply #24 on: March 25, 2014, 11:04:50 PM »

Orange County, Ca.

Once the most famous and influential GOP stronghold, the county is now purple.
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