Mountain states

Regional definitions vary from source to source. The states shown in dark red are usually included, while all or portions of the striped states may or may not be considered part of the Mountain states.

The Mountain states form one of the nine geographic divisions within the United States which are officially recognized by that country's census bureau.

The division consists of eight states: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. Together with the Pacific States of Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington, the Mountain States constitute the broader region of the West, one of the four regions the United States Census Bureau formally recognizes (the Northeast, South and Midwest being the other three). The word "Mountain" refers to the Rocky Mountains, which run north-south throughout the division, and also to Mountain Standard Time, which is observed in the entire division except Nevada in its entirety and the Idaho panhandle; in addition, Arizona is one hour behind the other Mountain States (but for the aforementioned exceptions) from the first Sunday in April until the last Sunday in October, because Daylight Saving Time is not observed in Arizona.

Since the late 1960s, the Mountain states have moved to challenge the Southern states for the distinction of being the nation's most politically Republican geographical entity; a large part of this trend has been caused by the arrival of individuals from the more Democratic Pacific states, especially California, from that time onward.

The brand of conservatism espoused by some in the region has at times manifested itself in extreme ways as several Patriot/Militia groups with Neo-Nazi tendencies have established their headquarters in parts of Idaho and Montana. However, there is a clear distinction from the American Bible Belt, with the philosophy of Mountain States citizens often being much more libertarian and based upon individualism. Some argue its foundation is the Wild West and solitary cowboy traditions. It is argued that legalized medicinal marijuana, prostitution, gambling and less opposition to same-sex marriage are aspects of this brand of individualism.

The Republican monopoly on the mountain states eased a bit in 2004. Democrats gained control of the state legislatures in Montana and Colorado, won back a House and Senate seat in Colorado and the governorship in Montana. In Utah, Democrats came within ten percentage points of the governorship and won the state's second top ranking post as the Mayor of Salt Lake County (roughly a million residents). New Mexico has become more Democratic than the rest of the area recently, having voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in 1992, 1996 and 2000, and John Kerry, although he didn't carry any of the mountain states, gave a stronger showing than Al Gore in Colorado, and made it a close race in Nevada and New Mexico.

Howard Dean has argued that Republicans performed more poorly than expected during the 2004 elections due to a libertarian backlash against activist conservatism. Democrats have felt the Mountain States, especially Colorado, Montana, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico are a place where their party can grow in the future. Democratic Party growth is also helped by the region's increasing Hispanic population, already a significant political factor in several of the Mountain States (most notably New Mexico, and also Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada).

In their geopolitical book The Day America Told The Truth, James Patterson and Peter Kim place most of the territory found within the Mountain States in a moral region they label Marlboro Country, with the division's eastern and southern salients being slotted into their Granary and L.A.-Mex regions respectively.

Demographics

As of 2000, the Mountain States had a combined population of 18,172,295. This number was estimated to increase 11.66% to 20,291,305 by 2005. The Mountain region covers 856,078 square miles of land, and has an average population density of 21.23 people per square mile.

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