So what makes white voters different in Maine and Iowa and Vermont?

[cali]

In most states- even blue ones- the President did not receive the majority of white votes, but in some of the whitest states- and rural ones, the President received some of his highest margins.

Why?

[elleng]

1. I'll be interested to see what DUers say about this, cali.

[rzemanfl]

2. When there are not a lot of black people around it

is not necessary for the power structure to spread a lot of racist propaganda. Predjudice is learned.

[cali]

3. huh? We live in a very interconnected world

it's not like Fox News doesn't exist in Iowa or Vermont or Maine. That just doesn't make sense.

[rzemanfl]

6. Prejudice is learned in childhood. I can remember when our first McDonald's opened. The world was

not so inteconnected back in the '50s and '60s.

[FATNED]

4. I've been wondering this as well.

I grew up in Nebraska which borders Iowa and I'm assuming has similar demographics. Never quite figured out why NE is reliably red and Iowa is reliably blue.

[Spider Jerusalem]

10. Historical demographics and cultural differences

Iowa was settled by the descendants of New England Puritans and Pennsylvania Quakers. A lot of the early Nebraska pioneers were Scots-Irish Kentuckians and Missourians. The cultural influence of those differences continues to persist.

[justgamma]

14. Western Iowa is extremely red.

Eastern Iowa is extremey blue. I think Iowans really take the first in the nation seriously. A lot of us are involved from the beginning. We read and are able to filter out the BS coming at us.
Also, there is no gerrymandering here. The legislature doesn't do the redistricting. That's how we got the wonderful Bruce Braley and Dave Loebsack and the horrible Steve King.

[Corgigal]

5. they read

http://nces.ed.gov/naal/estimates/StateEstimates.aspx

[rzemanfl]

7. Excellent point.

[whistler162]

8. ????????????????

What is it with this idiotic tripe? So much worthless stupidity.

[woolldog]

9. The President won the white vote in the following states:

Connecticut, Delaware (probably), Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York (tied), Oregon, Rhode Island (probably), and Washington.

In a few more states he won the white female vote, but lost the overall white vote: California, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin.

[freethought]

11. That's a hard one to explain

I'll try to speak for Maine. I lived there for several years and found it a place that trying to determine the direction of the political winds can be difficult. I will say that there is defenite indepedent streak that runs through the Maine electorate. You can see this in the election of Angus King to Olympia Snowe's senate seat. King ran and won as an independant for Governor several years ago and he left the office with good approval ratings and high marks for a job well done. Last election in 2010 Mainers voted in a Tea Party nutcase named Paul LePage. This was at a time when Maine was bleeding jobs and perhaps just about anyone looked good. For a while his approval rating hovered in the 50% range give or take a few points. Now it seems Maine is having voters regret with LePage. Some polls taken earlier in the year put his approval rating at 41% and a dissapproval rating at 52%. I have read that some people consider LePage somewhat of a media whore and that he has a tendency to invite controversy whenever he opens his big mouth.

What was it that turned Maine off to Romney? I would guess that it may have been his continual flip-flopping or perhaps what came to light about Bain Capital. It is anybody's guess. Perhaps that is something for political scientists to write papers on later.

[HopeHoops]

12. Nothing. It only matters in swing states - HENCE the need to eliminate the EC. Popular vote only!

[1-Old-Man]

13. Education.

I thought that answer was obvious.