I think the anti-Seattle people on FR need to be reminded that in most states the Rep/Dem split for presidential elections breaks about 53%/47%, it varies based on the candidate, and that there is probably no state in the country that isn’t at least 35-40% liberal. The Red State/Blue State dichotomy is largely a fabrication based on relatively minor differences, and that no one can afford to be smug merely because their state currently enjoys a 55%-45% conservative majority.
Your right, you have to look deeper into the demographics. For example you might think that Iowa is more conservative than NJ. However the white vote in Iowa went for Obama in 2012, while the white vote in NJ went easily for Romney.