We Aren’t Polarized
…most of the evidence used to support this claim does not show a process of polarization, as commonly understood. Instead, it shows a process of party sorting.
As the chart shows above, the number of liberals and conservatives has not changed much over the past few decades. Instead, as Dickinson shows, the liberals are now all in the Democratic party, and the conservatives are all Republicans. We are just sorted better, not more polarized than we ever were.
Click here for reuse options!Copyright 2014 Liberaland
By: Stuart Shapiro
Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.
12 responses to We Aren’t Polarized
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Carla Akins July 14th, 2014 at 21:51
This is disheartening.
jasperjava July 15th, 2014 at 09:27
How so? A lot of people who call themselves “moderate” are liberals who recoil from the word due to decades of demonisation through right-wing propaganda; some are conservatives who are embarrassed at Republican antics.
What counts is that demographics are on our side. The conservative base of old angry white men are dying off, while women and minorities are gaining.
Carla Akins July 15th, 2014 at 11:35
The concern is not enough of them are riled up sufficiently to vote – especially in non-Presidential elections.
Carla Akins July 14th, 2014 at 21:51
This is disheartening.
jasperjava July 15th, 2014 at 09:27
How so? A lot of people who call themselves “moderate” are liberals who recoil from the word due to decades of demonisation through right-wing propaganda; some are conservatives who are embarrassed at Republican antics.
What counts is that demographics are on our side. The conservative base of old angry white men are dying off, while women and minorities are gaining.
Carla Akins July 15th, 2014 at 11:35
The concern is not enough of them are riled up sufficiently to vote – especially in non-Presidential elections.
Tommy6860 July 14th, 2014 at 22:13
Seems to me the messages getting to the red areas in this country are not the real messages and this is the result. A comprehensive education among the ignorant would change views into a more realistic thing, instead of some foisted agenda these folks perceive they’re getting.
jasperjava July 15th, 2014 at 09:30
There’s no way to educate the wilfully ignorant.
Tommy6860 July 14th, 2014 at 22:13
Seems to me the messages getting to the red areas in this country are not the real messages and this is the result. A comprehensive education among the ignorant would change views into a more realistic thing, instead of some foisted agenda these folks perceive they’re getting.
jasperjava July 15th, 2014 at 09:30
There’s no way to educate the wilfully ignorant.
mea_mark July 15th, 2014 at 09:59
Party sorting is polarizing. This is more a game of semantics than anything else. Both sides are more energized because of the sorting which is causing a polarized atmosphere. Call it what you will, the country is activated at both extremes.
mea_mark July 15th, 2014 at 09:59
Party sorting is polarizing. This is more a game of semantics than anything else. Both sides are more energized because of the sorting which is causing a polarized atmosphere. Call it what you will, the country is activated at both extremes.