What Happened?

On Election Day, Colorado supported their first Democratic candidate since 1964, awarding Barack Obama its nine electoral votes. The question is, how and why did this state turn blue?

First, in a break down of votes by county, Obama carried most of the state's most central and populous areas including Larimer, Boulder, Jefferson, Adams, Arapahoe, and Clear Creek. These counties not only contain Colorado's most metropolitan areas including Denver, Lakewood, and Aurora, they also house Colorado's most prominent universities and colleges. In addition to these counties, Obama also carried many of the counties along the Colorado-New Mexico border, a state that also went for Obama.

In contrast, John McCain carried most of the state's rural counties in both east and west Colorado. While by number of counties, McCain outnumbered Obama, the counties he carried were far less dense in population.

Secondly, looking at the exit polls, Obama also carried the largest demographic groups in Colorado. The vote by sex showed men voting 49% for Obama and 50% for McCain; however, women voted for Obama 56% to McCain's 41%. As for the Hispanic vote, Obama received 61% to McCain's 38%.

Finally, of voters basing their decision on the economy, 56% supported Obama while only 42% supported McCain. For these reason, Obama was able to turn the state soundly blue.