Any analysis of how Daniel Akaka and Ed Case performed in last week's primary election has to be considered carefully.

For instance, a district-by-district look at the results will give you a general idea of where Case was strong and where Akaka prevailed.

That picture is fairly dramatic. Case, although a Democrat, won where Republicans usually win. That includes East Honolulu, Waikiki, Manoa and Makiki, Kailua on O'ahu and booming Kailua, Kona.

What's the common thread here? Well, one big common denominator in the Case areas is income. These are all relatively affluent areas, no question.

In fact, affluence — or in some cases the desire to become affluent — may have been the biggest factor in this election.

It may also be the controlling factor in elections to come.

One point to remember is that even in areas that Akaka "won," there were often large chunks of votes that went to Case. There were, in fact, many "battleground" districts where a relative handful of votes separated the two.

The most vivid example of this is in State House District 40 (Makakilo, Kapolei, Royal Kunia).

Just four votes separated winner Akaka from challenger Case. Just four out of more than 4,052 official votes cast.

This district, with its sprawling suburbs, townhouses and subdivisions crawling up the hill above Ko Olina, is likely as good an example as any of the split personality of Hawai'i voters today.

Lance Funakoshi of 'Ewa Beach, who works in the heart of Kapolei, says he senses a split between old-timers who have a sense of group identity and newcomers who are concerned — perhaps rightfully — about themselves.

"It's the old-timers versus the 'I' folks," he said. "Family values are changing. People vote according to the way they're brought up."

He may be referring to the split between older folks who maintain memories of the days when the Democrats had to band together to achieve educational, social and economic success and the newer generation that is more focused on today's needs: buying and maintaining a house, putting the kids through school and so forth.

The demographics (based on the last Census) of the 40th District offer a clue to why it is such a classic case of split voter personality.

Ethnically, the district is almost 43 percent Asian, mostly Japanese- and Filipino-Americans. That looks like an old-time solid Democratic district.

But this is also a young district, with nearly three-quarters of the residents (not necessarily voters) under 45 years of age.

Despite its youth, it is a decidedly middle-class district with a median household income of $69,534. Almost half the folks living there, whether in a townhouse or single-family home, are married with children.

The majority of folks in the district work at white-collar jobs.

Most of these folks grew up in households where the struggles of the Democratic Party to achieve social justice and economic opportunity were the subject of dinner-table talk.

It is a heritage that drives a voter to Daniel Akaka and the seniority he represents within the party.

But at the same time, they are scrambling to hang on to their toehold on middle-class life and middle-class affluence.

That's precisely the audience Case aimed at with his theme of moderation.

If the 40th District is any indication, these two great themes are battling each other almost to a standstill.

And just who were those four voters, anyway?

Reach Jerry Burris at jburris@honoluluadvertiser.com.