What accounts for this difference? Demography, industry composition, local policies and attitudes towards covid all played a part. Biden counties were far more likely to be urban, where retaining a job often required using public transportation or huddling with colleagues. They also had a larger concentration of service work—dry cleaners and baristas were more likely to be out of a job during lockdowns.
eig found that the retail and hospitality sectors bounced back faster in rural areas and small cities, which Mr Trump won. High rates of remote work among highly educated Biden county residents hit in-person consumption, stunting local economies and slowing job growth. The exodus from big cities hurt too.
Republicans tend to judge the economy unfavourably when Democrats are in office and vice versa—attitudes flip when administrations change over. But for all the blame Republicans have pinned on Mr Biden for today’s food and petrol prices, the familiar story about left-behind America needs an update.■
