Economics
Political Consequences of Urban-Rural Divides in Developed Democracies
Quick fact
In the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Joe Biden won 86% of the 3,000 smallest counties, yet Donald Trump won 74% of all counties; this deep rural-urban polarization is mirrored in countries like France, Germany, and Poland, where urban centers vote left and rural areas vote right.
Why this is interesting
Look at an electoral map of the United States or the United Kingdom: vast stretches of red (conservative) meet dense pockets of blue (progressive). Why did politics become so geographically split, and what does that mean for democracy?