Idaho is one of the reddest of the red states and appears resistant to the increasing proclivity of voters in the Intermountain West to vote for Democrats. President Bush carried Idaho by 68 percent in 2004, the highest percentage in the country. This January our Legislature will be the most Republican in the country.

Despite over 14,000 people turning out on a cold February morning at Boise State University's Taco Bell Arena, President-elect Barack Obama took only 36 percent of the Idaho vote.

Daniel Kemmis, director of the Center for the Rocky Mountain West at the University of Montana, sees a major political realignment occurring in the area over the last eight years as voters elect Democrats in increasing numbers.

New York Times columnist Tim Egan told a City Club of Boise forum this summer about changes in political behavior in the Intermountain West. Eight years ago, all of the region's governors were Republican. Today Montana, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico have Democratic chief executives.

On Nov. 4, New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado went for Obama while Montana gave McCain a slim plurality. The victory of self-described conservative Blue Dog Democrat Walt Minnick gives Idaho its first Democrat in Congress in 16 years.

I don't know why Idaho remains so red, but I have some theories.

Idaho is relatively isolated and sparsely populated. Rural areas tend to be conservative. In fact, some of the bluest places in the Rocky Mountain states have large urban areas. There is evidence that as Boise becomes more urban, it is changing its voting patterns. This phenomenon comes to an abrupt halt as one moves to the suburban and rural areas of Ada County.

Idaho has not experienced sustained immigration. We have a fairly homogeneous population made up of persons of European background, and those moving to Idaho have generally been white. States experiencing political realignment have had larger influxes of minorities. Such voters tend to be more liberal. Idaho has a vibrant and growing Hispanic population, but their political power has yet to be demonstrated.

For over 100 years of statehood, Idahoans have seen themselves as rugged individualists who express a love-hate relationship with the federal government. We favor less government and have a libertarian streak.

Jill Gill, a historian at BSU, posits that religion has played a role in making Idaho a red state. She notes that in the last 40 years there has been growth of conservative evangelicalism in Idaho coupled with the steady strength of our LDS population. During this time more moderate mainline faith groups dropped in their percentage of the population.

Idaho State University political scientist David Adler argues that for Idahoans, conservative social issues tend to trump the voters' sense of their own economic interest. This contributes to the election of Republicans.

The media have reported studies showing a relationship between education and voting patterns. Highly educated people tend to vote Democratic. Idaho unfortunately has one of the lowest rates of high school graduates attending college and one of the lowest percentages of residents with degrees.

If the above theories are valid, Idaho will remain a Republican stronghold despite the changing political culture that surrounds us.

Marilyn Shuler served as director of the Idaho Human Rights Commission from 1978 to 1998 and was president of the Idaho Human Rights Education Center during the construction of the Anne Frank memorial. She also served on the Boise School Board and the board of the Public Employee Retirement System of Idaho. She was community representative on the Statesman editorial board in 2003.