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Let's imagine you pursue a career in an area with an energetic economy and housing prices that reflect the desirability. That will quite often be a deep-blue city. Once you want to perhaps enjoy the fruits of that investment, downsize a bit, slow down a little - well, then it's quite tempting to look at areas where your equity stretches a bit further. And they do tend to be a bit redder. That's just the market.
Why would you be obliged to change your political viewpoint, though?
1. to fit in
2. to prevent ruining an area in which you live
3. to keep crime low
4. to maintain housing values
5. to keep the schools good
6. to keep unemployment down
7. to keep taxes low
They usually don't. People move from NYC or California to other blue cities like Austin and Nashville.
I don't think there is an exodus from LA to the Mississippi Delta.
Same with Oklahoma. The few Californians that come are conservatives who complain about California being too regulated with taxes too high. The move was probably real easy from requesting and getting a job transfer. They love to build big two story houses from the money they got from selling much smaller homes in California.
It is not "new", but is increasing in volume dramatically.
Heck, there are New Yorkers now in the mountains in Eastern TN, attracted by the scenery, no taxes, and no "diversity". Fortunately there are not enough to make a difference in any election...……… yet.
Unfortunately, they have infested NC and have changed some elections.
Nah, I dunno about that, especially when it comes to liberals moving into hardcore conservative rural areas of NC. Maybe they would move to the larger cities (Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.), but I think they avoid the extreme right wing areas.
It's been my experience (similar to the post above mine) that some of the most extreme far-right people in NC have moved out of liberal states (NY, NJ) because they apparently couldn't take the politics in their home state anymore, and they're moving to states that they think the more conservative or even moderate states are friendlier to their extremist viewpoints. Or is that what you're saying too?
I've always lived in a red state and mostly rural. We aren't city people. However, even in the smallest town or most rural area we've always been able to find an enclave of liberal friends.
I live in one of most liberal counties in Maryland near DC. I have likewise been able to find an enclave of more moderate and conservative friends.
All of us agree that we need to be careful about voicing our political opinions around here. As in, don't do it.
Most people are much more apolitical than the lunatics who post about politics on the internet all day long. A lot of "liberals" are really just liberals on election day. Their politics are not the core of their identity, it is just how they vote. Every other day of the year they are just people. People move to places for all sorts of reasons - to be close to family, jobs, specific amenities they like (mountains, ocean, etc.). It is only a narrow group of people who choose where to live explicitly based on politics. It might enter into the equation but isn't the main driver.
You can sell your Bergen house for enough to pay cash for a retirement home in the SE. Imagine how little you can live on if you own your home outright owing nothing. If it is a smallish home you can pay very little in property tax because you no longer care about the crappy low funded local schools. I know multitudes of people who moved from NJ literally the summer their last kid graduated HS. Dems and Reps, ideology had nothing to do with it. They cashed out of the high cost NE and its better schools once they no longer needed them.
Neither of these is a new thing.
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