Democratic rural areas?

[Alcon]

Shannon, SD
6.0 people per square mile.
Kerry won 84.6-12.5

Todd, SD
6.5 people per square mile.
Kerry won 72.2-25.2

Buffalo, SD
4.3 people per square mile.
Kerry won 71.7-26.5

I think those are about the poorest areas in the United States.

Kerry won Corson, SD, which has 1.7 people per square mile.

Indeed, Native Americans. Shannon, SD, is my "home county," so to speak. It was a 2000-to-2004 flip. The Native Americans really got the vote out this year.

In any case, Democratic rural areas tend to be seperatable into a few categories:

1. Heavily populated by minorities (Shannon, SD)
2. With a large service industry population, like with ski resorts (Alpine, CA)
3. With a large "latte liberal" population or year-round vacationers (Blaine, ID)
4. With extreme left economics that outdo social leanings (Mingo, WV)
5. With an odd population attraction, such as environmentalism (San Juan, WA)
6. Counties that actually have major population centers but are huge (St. Louis, MN)
7. A mainly northeastern phenomenon of progressive rural counties (the entire state of Vermont)

Basically any rural county can be seperated into one or more of these seven counties.

[Alcon]

San Juan was a Republican county in the 80s. A lot of people from Seattle moved there, which probably made it more liberal. But yeah, I guess its rural and environmentalist. I wonder if Vashon could count as "rural."

Mason and Cowlitz might qualify. Jefferson is probably democrat all over, but made especially democrat by Port Angeles. I'm not sure what's up with Pacific and Grays Harbor counties.

Asotin, Ferry, Pend Oreille, and Klickitat used to vote democrat quite a bit, until the 90s.

Yeah, Mason and Cowlitz sort of qualify for #4 - I should remove the word "extreme" though. Jefferson is Democratic almost all over (I've seen the city results - other than Port Ludlow, it's quite Democratic). It's Port Townsend, not Port Angeles, by the way; PA is in Clallam. Port Townsend is pretty much hippieville.

By the way, Lewis, what you say about the categories is *somewhat* true. #3 is true in Blaine County, Idaho, where there are year-round visitors like that more than service employees. I was trying to cover all specific bases; #5 made me think of San Juan Island, which doesn't really have a large service industry, so I included it. It might also qualify for #3, though.