Columbia has one huge university and two good sized colleges. As far as Missouri goes, it's probably the most liberal city. Take a drive for 10 minutes in any direction though and the atmosphere definitely changes.

I’ve been to Columbia before. Supremely bizarre drive from St Louis to the campus. With any luck that’ll be my first and only time in Missouri

Sounds like a college town, so I imagine it's not at all indicative of the rest of the state, politically