voting patterns in each state since 1984

[anvi]

Husker's analysis is right on.  I'm a native North Dakotan, and the eastern and western parts of North Dakota embody a political divide as Husker describes, partly due to economic differences ("urban" vs. rural).   But it's also the case that North Dakotans vote moderate Democrats into the Senate and sometimes the House, largely because they find Democrats to be more proactive on ag policy.  But North Dakotans vote for Republicans for executive office because they feel Republicans better represent their social values there.  I was overjoyed, personally, to see that Obama took the plains states seriously and run active campaigns there(he visited Grand Forks twice over the summer).  I think he could have pulled in more than the 45% that he did had he visited NoDak university towns in the West like Bismarck and Dickinson.  Two October polls in North Dakota had the state statistically tied, but there were 11% that were undecided in both, and they seem to have broke almost entirely for McCain at the end.  I don't necessarily think the Dakotas are winnable for Democrats right now because pro-life preferences are very strong there (very large German and Norwegian Catholic polulations).  And a Democrat would have to spend lots of time and resources to win the Dakotas, which together carry only as many electoral votes as Kansas, so...