state capitals

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Charleston probably went for Obama.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

With London it depends how you define it. If London = the GLA (once the GLC - the area is exactly the same but for a few acres with no people living in them lost to Hertfordshire) then it is very much a swing city, if London = a reasonable definition of the wider metropolitan area, then it actually leans Tory, and if London = the old LCC area, then it's strongly Labour (despite the West End). The GLC was in fact created back in the '60's to give the Tories a chance of running London as the LCC had been Labour-dominated since the '30's (irony = the Tories would have won a majority on the LCC in 1967 anyway. Though never again, admittedly). The difference between London and certain other European capitals (Paris say) is that the old docks (and thus industry) went right up into the middle of the city. That, and a total lack of urban planning until the horse had bolted.

But if we're talking provincial capitals, then Edinburgh was a Tory city until the '80's and Cardiff has always leaned to the right of the rest of South Wales (not hard, admittedly). Back when such things mattered, Belfast was far to the left of the rest of Ulster (because of its industries more than the fact it was the capital, mind). And of the few county towns to take on the attitude and appearance (in certain respects) of provincial capitals, Durham City is a little bourgeois island in a vast proletarian sea and York is reasonably leftish by tradition (mainly because it used to be home to stable, unionised industries like chocolate manufacturing and the railways).

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Remains important to point that out, still.

I did a map of the Vienna results after the elections last year. The funny part was the way the Social Democrats and Freedom Party had exactly the same pattern of support.

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The tiny parcel of land (pretty much entirely big buildings, actually) is the City of London - that is, the boundaries mediaeval city (slightly tweaked about a decade ago so that the boundary no long runs through the middle of some buildings). It's Tory, of course, though voted for Livingstone in 2004 (and probably 2000) and for the Labour candidate in 1997. Plenty of of other posh areas in the West End though - Kensington, Chelsea, Fulham (though this used to be a working class area), parts of Hammersmith (see Fulham, but even more so). And on the other side of the river, Putney, Battersea (see Hammersmith but even more so), etc.

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Ah, but there are different types of rich areas in Manhattan. It's hard to imagine a transported Upper East Side not voting strongly for the Right in most (all?) European countries. Other parts of the borough, hmm, maybe not.