Study shows democrats prefer living in close proximity to others

[regulator 0]

While republicans prefer to be in more rural areas...

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/politics/2013/09/if-you-live-near-other-people-youre-probably-democrat-if-your-neighbors-are-distant-republican/7047/

The below graph from Conor Sen, an armchair demographer in Atlanta, has been making the rounds this morning in my Twitter feed. It neatly reflects a political phenomenon we've written about before: Yes, cities generally tend to lean more Democratic, and rural states more Republican, but the fine-grained relationship between politics and population density is actually quite remarkable.

This scatter plot looks at congressional districts, which are ranked according to the Cook Parisan Voting Index. That measure essentially reflects how Republican or Democratic a district leans (by percentage of voters, not ideological purity) relative to the national average. A Democratic district shown above as +10, for example, gave the Democratic candidate in the last two presidential elections on average 10 points more of the local vote (say, 63 percent compared to 53 percent) than the nation-wide vote.

Sen compared that data with Census data on population density by congressional district. Here is how a smarter person than me interpreted the resulting picture:

But you may also be struck by the shape of that trend line (Sen is quick to note, by the way, that he's not a statistician). It roughly suggests a political tipping point somewhere around a population density of about 800-1,000 people per square mile. That's actually a number that we've seen before. Here is a different take on the same question, looking at presidential votes by county in the 2012 election, via Dave Troy:

Troy concluded that, "at about 800 people per square mile, people switch from voting primarily Republican to voting primarily Democratic." Richard Florida looked in more depth at that finding last November with a broader conversation on what this trend really says about our differing political preferences and needs in crowded cities and leafy exurbs.

Feel free to weigh in below on why you think your politics may be tied to the proximity of your neighbors (or maybe they're not?). Sen is a bit more zen about what all of this portends for the state of the country in an email: "The big realization I had a couple years ago was if the last era (call it 1982-2007) was driven by debt, the next one (2008-??) appears to be driven by demographics, and I'm trying to get ahead of the curve."

[rushmc 18]

EEeewwwww
Thats just creepy

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[kelpdiver 2]

this looks like another case of mixing up causation and correlation

[quade 3]

Quote

...an armchair demographer in Atlanta...

later

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(Sen is quick to note, by the way, that he's not a statistician)

We may have just found the issue here. Somebody who doesn't understand the difference between data and conclusions that can be logically drawn from them or simply manipulated to support preconceived notions.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[Andy9o8 0]

kelpdiver

this looks like another case of mixing up causation and correlation

Yup. I was gonna mention that connection between ice cream sales and domestic violence, but you just ruined it.

[champu 1]

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3845874#3845874
http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4440215#4440215

You're not helping me convince myself that I have anything left to add on speakers corner topics.

[rhaig 0]

Andy9o8

Yup. I was gonna mention that connection between ice cream sales and domestic violence, but you just ruined it.

I was going to bring up having a passport and diabetes.

no wait... I still am
http://boingboing.net/2011/03/08/passport-ownership-p.html

--
Rob

[rehmwa 2]

kelpdiver

this looks like another case of mixing up causation and correlation

nail hit on a 'no kidding' moment

is anyone surprised that people that live in concentrated areas prefer social structures that require specialties and leveraging the work of others

next thing you know, he'll state that people that live in the wilderness just randomly have better survival skills


the real issue is that people that live in tightly densified areas seem to think their lifestyle must be forced on everyone else that might live in a different environment

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[Remster 24]

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the real issue is that some people that live in tightly densified areas seem to think their lifestyle must be forced on everyone else that might live in a different environment

Fixed... And vice versa.

Remster

[kallend 1,651]

Fixed the title for you.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[rehmwa 2]

Remster

Quote

the real issue is that some people that live in tightly densified areas seem to think their lifestyle must be forced on everyone else that might live in a different environment

Fixed... And vice versa.

good fix.

'vice versa'? that some tightly densified people like to force areas on environmental differences?

.
.
.

ok, I can see that

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[mpohl 1]

Not even having read the first sentence of whatever you posted, just the subject line.

Yes, I would much rather prefer to live in CA or NY than in GA. And yes, I am a Commie at heart and will never understand, nor try to understand bible-thumping Christians.

[jgoose71 0]

Are you sure Democrats just don't move to the city to be closer to the Welfare Office?

"There is an art, it says, or, rather, a knack to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss."
Life, the Universe, and Everything

[Gravitymaster 0]

jgoose71

Are you sure Democrats just don't move to the city to be closer to the Welfare Office?

Well, apparently it's asking too much for them to obtain an ID to vote, so this would make sense. Oh, life's little inconveniences. What to do, what to do.......

[Tink1717 2]

Quote

Fixed the title for you.

Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off.
-The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!)
AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717

[Gravitymaster 0]

Liberal need the convenience of having someone close so they don't have to go too far out of their way in their Prius clown cars to stick their noses into other peoples business.

[regulator 0]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FAI_-woNh4