One state that stands out here is Idaho. When you plot it (credit to cinyc), it's borders with WA, OR, and WY stand out. What is going on here; is there actually an allure of conservatives self-sorting into Idaho, or could the metrics they use in Idaho somehow be flawed? Obviously buy Idaho is one of the fastest growing states, just confused as to why the divides with the boarders of other states is so stark.
Within Idaho, a lot of that is just small counties in Boise metro getting a huge exurban boost and growth around CdA/Sandpointe. Some of that is just an artifact from starting from really low baselines.
As far as the borders - it's not as surprising as you'd think. Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon are not economically vibrant and the only industries there are ag, Nevada is similarly sparse and empty, Utah and WY is rural/exurban rural growth, and Montana is actually showing the same growth as the ID panhandle outside of Missoula (which is too expensive).
