State profile: Missouri

Missouri is of prime political importance and its 11 electoral votes will be keenly fought over. Except for President Dwight Eisenhower in 1956, it voted for every 20th Century presidential winner.

But it is a difficult state to characterise as its central location gives it a patchwork of geography and cultures.

KEY FACTS Population: 5,595,211 (ranked 17 among states) Governor: Bob Holden (D) Electoral College votes: 11

The rural areas tend to split along Civil War lines: the north-east and north-west, settled by Virginians and southerners goes Democrat, while the south-west leans Republican.

St Louis is a large city with an East Coast feel while Kansas City on the opposite side of the Ozark mountains has more of a mid-western character.

2003 CONGRESS House of Representatives: 4 Democrat, 5 Republican Senate: 2 Republican

It was instrumental in the development of jazz and twice voted "Barbecue Capital of the World".

In the north of the state, plains of farmland and grain sweep into Iowa while the south is where Mark Twain immortalised the Mississippi.

In the 19th Century Missouri was a gateway to the west, its railroads branching out across the continent.

VOTING RECORD 2000: Bush 50%, Gore 47% 1996: Clinton 41%, Dole 41% 1992: Clinton 44%, Bush 34%, Perot 22%

But its importance has declined and St Louis airport workers, once at the heart of TWA's network, now face job losses following the airline's acquisition by American Airlines.

The town of Branson, a centre for country music, remains one of the most popular tourist destinations in the US, with more theatre seats than Broadway.