The 1990s were horrible; while the towns on the Range stayed Democratic, the rural area flipped from Dem to GoOper due to moral and environmental issues.  I get the strong sense that a lot of people are coming back.  Also there is something of a pragmatic ideal up there at a certain level; the reality-based thing contrasted with the Bush Administration is a strong, strong selling point; you see it in people I would once have considered very anti-environmental signing on to strong policies against climate change.  And liberals there have backed off of cookie-cutter gun control or draconian timber industry regulation; that has also lowered the temperature.