It's a different dynamic out here. Michigan has the entrenched union enclaves of Detroit, Lansing, Flint, et al. They always vote D as a rule, but it's a war zone, so they understand that it's a good idea to keep a gat around to defend yourself against the crackheads on the next block.
Out here it's the onslaught from the left coast along with the liberal college town hipsters that have everything screwed up. Add to that the recent influx of the doper refugees, and it gets pretty sporty politics-wise.