There are lots of reasons why the 2012 presidential election broke the way it did, but one that’s not often reported—but particularly germane to Per Square Mile—is the divide between cities and the country. I’ve been thinking for a while now about this split as a driving force behind the polarization of U.S. politics, and I know I’m not alone. (On election night, Adam Rogers tweeted as much.)

But I was curious. Can we actually see the divide between cities and the country in the electoral map? In short, yes, but I’ll let the maps to the rest of the talking.

Swipe back and forth to see how population density relates to each candidates’ electoral result.

Thanks to Andy Woodruff of the always interesting Bostonography for the shapefile of the election results.

Related posts:

Income inequality, as seen from space

Redrawing the United States of America

Ghosts of geography