State profile: Wyoming

There should not be any surprises about the Wyoming vote. It is the home state of Vice-President Dick Cheney, who was a Congressman from here for a number of years, and in 2000 Wyoming gave President Bush his largest share of the vote in any state.

As a secluded, introspective place, the state naturally leans Republican and has not elected a Democrat to Congress since 1976. President Clinton's active environmental policies did not endear him to Wyoming voters and Republican dominance continued in the 1990s.

When, in 1995, Mr Clinton asked his adviser Dick Morris to pick the most politically advantageous place for a presidential vacation, Mr Morris chose Wyoming.

KEY FACTS Population: 493,782 (ranked 50 among states) Governor: Dave Freudenthal (D) Electoral college votes: 3

Wyoming has a relatively large population of native Americans, although repeated evictions and treaty violations have meant their history has not been a happy one.

It is also classic cowboy country, with a beautiful, thinly populated landscape, 13,000 feet mountains, open plains and expansive skies. But present-day Wyoming relies more on minerals and mining than cowboys and cattle.

2003 CONGRESS House of Representatives: 1 Republican Senate: 2 Republican

The oil price slumps of the early 1980s and late 1990s led to intensified production of other minerals and now Wyoming produces 30% of the USA's coal. Its low-sulphur coal is highly valued in the wake of the Clean Air Act and the state is also the seventh-largest producer of oil and second-largest of natural gas.

Tourism is also essential to the economy. Millions of people flock to Yellowstone National Park each year and Jackson Hole in the north-west is now one of America's best all-year resorts.

VOTING RECORD 2000: Bush 68%, Gore 28% 1996: Clinton 37%, Dole 50%, Perot 12% 1992: Clinton 34%, Bush 40%, Perot 26%

But skilled jobs in Wyoming are scarce and a large proportion of college graduates leave the state because of lack of employment.