Thursday, July 26, 2018

New interactive 2016 presidential election tool from the New York Times

Today, the New York Times unveiled a new interactive map of the 2016 presidential election results. The map, which allows you to find voter precincts using your address, provides you with an easy way to go from place to place and compare results between similar localities. I will be doing a more in-depth analysis of this map in the coming days but I wanted to make sure you all were aware of its existence so you can play around for yourself.

At first glance, nothing about the map is completely surprising. One powerful thing about the map however is that it shows that the rural South isn't a red monolith, pockets of blue are dispersed throughout. It also shows that the pockets of red in "blue states" like New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, and California.

It also highlights that while our broader political split is predominantly urban/rural, a fact evident on county maps, there are even more micro divides within rural communities. For example, in the county I grew up in (Robeson County, NC), the precinct that I grew up in voted for Hillary Clinton by a 66-32 margin. However, Donald Trump won the whole county by 51-47 margin.

I hope you enjoy playing around with the tool. Expect a more in-depth look soon. 

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