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Study: Recreational Counties Tend to Vote More Democratic

Scala, Johnson, and Rogers 2015

A new study has found that rural voters don’t vote as universally Republican as it may seem, reports the Daily Yonder. Under the surface, things are a bit more complicated. But you have to know where to look for blue voters. And even in the areas where Democrats vote more heavily, they still lose.

The study was performed by the University of New Hampshire. It examined rural votes by the type of economic activity in the county. The findings? Counties dominated by farming only cast a quarter of their votes for Obama in 2012. But in counties dominated by recreation, that number rose to 42 percent.

Recreational counties draw revenue from outdoor activities such as canoeing or mountain-climbing. These areas tend to feature young, well-educated voters, favoring a more Democratic outcome.