… While the leftward lean of Massachusetts has become a part of our understanding of American politics, demographically speaking, the Bay State should be at least decent Republican territory, if you look at some measures. It is older and whiter than the national average, points that tend to be advantages for the GOP.
But Massachusetts serves as a reminder that understanding voters is a more complex task than tallying an electorate’s racial, ethnic and age composition. Other factors — like urban-rural makeup, church attendance and education levels — also help fill out the picture. [cont.]
Dante Chinni, Wall Street Journal