When you read up on U.S. political basics, you can’t help but come across the detail that many of the people in cities in the U.S. seem to lean left, yet what isn’t as clear is why and what influences their concentration in cities/urban areas.
Cities don’t exactly appear to be affordable, and left-leaning folks in the U.S. don’t seem to necessarily be much wealthier than right-leaning folks, so what’s contributed to this situation?
All the other answers here cite things like education and wealth, but spend time in politically-tidally-locked places like Rochester and Syracuse and you’ll realize all it boils down to is it being cultural. There are what many would call right-leaning cities, and they aren’t any different race-wise, ethnicity-wise, education-wise, or (most of the time) wealth-wise except that they’re right-leaning. Education/exposure does not magically change your whole philosophy, that’s like saying going to a Catholic school will guarantee your kid will be Catholic.
Large right leaning cities are very much an exception and not a rule. Of the top 30 US cities only two have Republican mayors. Fort Worth and Oklahoma City.
True. But it does make certain outcomes significantly more likely. Like adopting and voting more progressive.
I guess it depends then on how liberal you must be to truly be considered liberal. I remember a debate long ago where someone was celebrated as a liberal because they supported the LGBT but called out as a conservative immediately after because they then went on to say they also supported polygamy. Such is common for some harder issues like reparations (using an example there I can definitely relate to, I come from an ethnically mixed family and mingle well with liberals and even I think we’re “progressing” into a wall on that one).
Rochester is hardly right leaning. Republicans don’t even bother running a candidate for mayor. The congressional District that encompasses it and includes many surrounding more conservative areas went 59-39 to democrats in the last election. Certainly some of the surrounding areas tilt conservative but not the city itself. The suburbs are kind of a case by case mix. There’s 200,00 registered democrats in Monroe County vs 130,000 registered Republicans. I know party isn’t the same as liberal or conservative, but calling Rochester right leaning is a huge stretch. Syracuse too.