Terrorism and the Vote

Looking at the exit polls on cnn.com I found a couple of things interesting. Most notable was the fact that most people who felt terrorism was the most important issue voted for Bush. Also, people who were "worried about terrorism" had a slightly higher percentage of Bush votes. This in itself does not suprise me. What does suprise me is that, in light of the above, most of the coastal states (excluding southern) went to Kerry.
Map

Personally, I would be more worried about terrorism if I lived on the coasts or in a populous area like New York or Boston. That is not to say I don't find it concerning, but I think I live in a much safer area than some. The fact that so many states more vulnerable (in my opinion) went to Kerry tells me that other issues outweighed it.

I thought before that people felt one of Bush's strongest points was his stance on terrorism. Aside from the traditional democratic vs. republican regions, I'd like to know why Kerry appealed to these states, and why Bush was so strong in the south and midwest.