In a sea of Republican red, Cheney shows it's TRUE BLUE

CHENEY – Hay stacks at the north and south end of state Highway 904 provide bookends on what would appear to be Trump Country.

But sandwiched between the pro-Trump hay monuments, voters in the general election are seeing blue.

A look at the Nov. 5 general election unofficial precinct vote count in southern Spokane County shows a sea of Republican red, with a small Democratic blue island in Cheney, home to Eastern Washington University.

The contrast between the college town here and the surrounding area is similar to that seen in Whitman County, where the city of Pullman, home to Washington State University, is a blue island in a sea of rural red.

Pullman's left-leaning politics spawned by WSU staff and students hailing from other areas, but registering to vote in Whitman County, was so large it that they overshadowed rural and small-town voters countywide.

Here, Eastern Washington University's population isn't large enough to fully overshadow relatively conservative cities across the county. But the political beliefs in Cheney stand in stark contrast to neighboring cities like Airway Heights, Medical Lake and other smaller rural communities.

In Cheney, the unofficial Nov. 5 general election tally shows Kamala Harris received 55.3% of votes cast in the presidential election. Bob Ferguson also benefited from the liberal vote; he received 53.8%.

Within Cheney, support for Trump was limited to the Salnave precinct.

University neighborhoods - with significant student and faculty populations - heavily favored Harris.

Rural precincts outside Cheney overwhelmingly supported Trump, with precincts like 9008 giving him 71% of the vote.

Airway Heights and Medical Lake voters supported Trump, and leaned Republican, as well.

Trump garnered 54.7% of Airway Heights' votes and 59.3% of Medical Lake's. Similarly, Airway Heights and Medical Lake voters supported gubernatorial candidate Dave Reichert, a Wenatchee Republican, over Democrat Bob Ferguson.

Reichert received 54.9% in Airway Heights and 60.6% in Medical Lake.

Calls to Spokane County election officials and Eastern Washington University were not returned.

But Washington State University and Whitman County officials offered some observations on the apparent town-and-gown syndrome, when college culture and politics conflict with local culture and politics.

Washington State University Center for Civic Engagement Director Ben Calabretta said non-local university students account for some of the differences in election results.

According to Calabretta, universities encourage students to vote.

"They can register to vote here, or they can register to vote in their hometown," Calabretta said, noting the university doesn't keep track of which non-residents students vote locally or use absentee ballots.

Whitman County Auditor Sandy Jamison said many students voted on campus at WSU.

"On Election night, approximately 2,500 people came to the student hub," Jamison said.

On Monday, the Secretary of State's webpage showed Harris winning the city of Pullman by a margin of 2,260 votes.