Political Choice in a Polarized America

Abstract

What motivates citizens to support one party over the other? Do they carefully weigh all the relevant issues and assess which party or candidate best matches their own positions? Or do people look at politics as something more akin to a team sport—the specifics do not matter as long as you know what side your team is on? Understanding how and why Americans vote the way they do is central to understanding the political process. Political Choice in a Polarized America claims that individuals have core beliefs about what the government should or should not do, and these attitudes explain a great deal about what party a person identifies with and votes for. Moreover, the book demonstrates these attitudes’ explanatory power has increased in recent decades. Its thesis rests on the idea that voters generally try to support the party or candidate that best matches their orientations. However, voters’ ability to successfully do so varies as a function of the signals sent by elites. Voters have an easier time connecting their own orientations with the party offerings when the parties are polarized. As a result, voters’ policy attitudes explain a lot more about their partisan preferences than they did in previous eras. When the parties are polarized, people notice, even if they do not place close attention to politics. The result is an electorate divided by partisanship, policy, and ideology.