Two Americas: Individualism vs. federal help

That was the highest figure in that category since Ronald Reagan took about 67 percent of the rural vote in his big win in 1984, according to exit polls.

Vice President Al Gore, meanwhile, handily won the votes of people living in communities with more than 50,000 people. And the race in the suburbs, traditionally home to voters who swing between Republicans and Democrats, was virtually a tie between the candidates.

``It was a profound election, in many ways, that shows the gap between two Americas who voted for two different candidates,'' said Robert Tracinski, a fellow at the Marina del Rey-based Ayn Rand Institute, which promotes the individualistic philosophy Rand espoused in ``The Fountainhead.''

``Because there wasn't a big issue like the economy to cause people to vote on that one issue, because people were voting on their general world view, I think this exposes the profound difference in world views that generally breaks down on urban/rural lines.''

Rural voters still hold to the rugged individualist values of the American frontier, while urban voters are influenced by the college-educated elite that gravitates toward cities, said Tracinski.

The urban/rural division has been prevalent for decades, said Peter Dreier, a professor of politics and public policy at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Cities have been heavily Democratic since the Great Depression, first because of the large unionized and European-immigrant populations and now because of the large minority populations. Those city dwellers were attracted to the Democratic Party's support for government policies that help the lower class.

``The rural vote is much more traditional,'' Dreier said. Farmers have had a strong connection to the Democrats since the Depression as well, but with farming on the decline, ``the rural areas are much more the culture of the Christian Coalition and conservative social values,'' he said.

Although many in rural communities are economically vulnerable like city dwellers, cultural issues seem to have more weight with rural voters than economic issues, he said.

Given the urban/rural split, the suburban vote has been crucial in recent elections. Ronald Reagan easily won those areas in 1980 and 1984, as did George Bush in 1988. Bill Clinton reversed the tide in 1992, running virtually even with Bush in the suburbs.

Clinton's victory that year was not only a result of his carrying the suburbs: He also pulled even with Bush in rural areas Republicans normally take.

Tracinski said rural voters will eschew their philosophical views when hurting economically, which probably is why Clinton fared well there during the tough times of 1992. But he said that when there is no pressing crisis and when the economy is strong, the country reverts back to its traditional urban/rural patterns -- which it did in 2000.

Rural voters overwhelmingly backed George W. Bush, whose campaign stressed character and values. His showing among those voters was 19 percentage points higher than his father received in his losing bid for re-election in 1992, according to exit polls. And Gore's percentages in large cities were the highest since exit polls starting tracking that category in 1988.

-- Jim Puzzanghera