Question Details	Asked By	Asked On
Partisan Identification	USstudent244	10/15/03
Hello...Thank you for the Bush 2004 response. It was great. I have one more question. Can you describe for me the evolution of partisan identification of American voters since the 1960's? My book only mentions it but fails to describe it. THANK YOU
Answered By		Answered On
stevehaddock		10/21/03
Partisan identification asks the question: "Given that a voter holds a certain belief, how likely are they to vote for one party or the other?" Up to 1960, there were very few beliefs that could reliably be used to identify a person as a Democrat or Republican. In those days, both parties had a "conservative" wing, and a "liberal" wing. Northern Democrats - Liberals Southern Democrats - Conservatives North-eastern Republicans - Liberals ("Stalwarts") Western Republicans - Conservatives ("Mugwumps") However, in the 1960s, the Southern Democrats rejected the policies of Lyndon Johnson on race relations, and started to go Republican. To give you an idea of how big the shift was, Strom Thurmond ran as an independent Southern Democrat in 1948 and won several south-eastern states. When he died, he was a rock-rib Republican. Since then, Democrats have become much more liberal and have drawn support away from traditionally liberal Republican areas (California, New England). The Republicans have become more conservative, and have drawn support away from traditionally conservative Democratic areas (the South). As the parties became more polarized, so did their constituents. Because each party discouraged certain positions, voters who supported an issue, or more likely a set of issues, tended to vote along party lines. This trend continues so that instead of trying to get to the centre, many parties pick candidates who will appeal to their core support. For example, take abortion. If a person is pro-choice, the odds are overwhelming they will vote for a Democrat. If they are pro-life, they are even more likely to vote Republican. This choice often even overwhelms the candidate's personal view of the issue. Other controversial issues - capital punishment, military spending, affirmative action, also can identify a person as more likely to vote Democrat or Republican.

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