Democratic rural areas?

[danwxman]

Are you sure? Outside of New York state, I don't think that is true. I could be wrong.

A lot of the ones in Vermont aren't, but Vermont in't at all typical of rural New England (it's much more rounded so to speak).
Rural Maine is pretty blue collar for the most part (logging etc.) as is the northern tip of New Hampshire (which Kerry won). In southern New England a lot of the small towns are old mill towns and there's still a fair amount of factories there.

But I think those areas are also liberal on social issues -- or so I've been told from people who live there.

[bgwah]

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.

In the 1980 governors race, Jim-ing-McDermott won Klickitat and Ferry counties, but lost King and San Juan. lol

[Filuwaúrdjan]

But I think those areas are also liberal on social issues -- or so I've been told from people who live there.

I wouldn't have thought so; true there are the odd liberal touristy enclave but they don't dictate the political climate of the area much, if at all.
Check out who the Congressman for northern Maine is...