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The gulf in American politics between the left and the right can seem insurmountable. There are red states and blue states, liberal media sources and conservative media sources, even
by political party. Research has suggested that liberals and conservatives even wash with different shampoos and soaps and thus . But actually, millions of Americans cross that gulf every day — by being married to someone of a different political party. In , two researchers examined American couples to see how common "mixed" political marriages really are. Eitan Hersh, a professor of political science at Yale University, and Yair Ghitza, a chief scientist at political data firm Catalist, studied a database of more than 18 million couples drawn from voter registration records. They found that most married couples — 70 percent of them — were made up of people of the same political affiliation (either Democratic, Republican or independent/other). Married couples overall were somewhat more likely to be Republicans than Democrats. But, as the graphic below shows, “mixed” political marriages certainly do happen. Three percent of married couples are female Republicans married to male Democrats (upper right rectangle), while 6 percent of married couples are male Republicans with female Democrats (lower left rectangle). So, overall, nearly 1 in 10 married couples contain both a Republican and a Democrat. Nineteen percent of married couples are a Republican or a Democrat with an independent. In total, nearly 30 percent of all married couples are of mixed party affiliation. Meanwhile, 30 percent of married couples were exclusively Republican, 25 percent of married couples were all Democrat, and 15 percent were all independent.
Those findings might be surprising for people who are used to reading about America's divided politics, Hersh said. “There’s actually a lot of people all mixed up together in terms of their politics," Hersh said. Hersh and Ghitza also compared political affiliation to other factors that often guide people’s choice of a marital partner — like age, race and geographical vicinity. Of course, all of these factors also have strong ties to a person’s political affiliation. First, they found that marrying across political parties is far more common in the United States than marrying across racial categories. (This is partly due to the way political and racial categories are split up — America is majority white but not majority Democratic or Republican). In the United States, 71 percent of couples are in same-party marriages, compared with 93 percent in same-race marriages. Their research also supported previous findings that Democrats live in more partisan neighborhoods than Republicans do — partly due to concentrated African American communities, where most people are Democrats. In neighborhoods that were more than 90 percent Democratic, they found that 68 percent of households were made up of two Democrats. But in neighborhoods that were more than 90 percent Republican, only 55 percent of households were made up of two Republicans. Also in line with prior research, they found that men are more likely to be Republican. The study shows that there are twice as many Democratic-Republican households in which the husband is a Republican than in which the wife is a Republican.
They also found that older couples were much more likely to be of the same political party than younger couples are. Among married couples under 30, fewer than half were Democrat-Democrat or Republican-Republican pairs, the researchers say. But among couples over 80, 70 percent were. This is partly because more young people are independents. You can see those trends in the chart below, which shows how the household party registration of married couples changes by age. The bands in the middle get narrower as you go from the left to the right, showing that, as people get older, fewer are independents or in "mixed" political marriages. Instead, Democrat-Democrat and Republican-Republican couples become more common as people age. The researchers say this could be due to the effects of cohabitation — after years of living together, one spouse may be persuaded to join the other’s team.
One of the paper’s main findings is about political turnout in elections. It appears that your spouse’s politics have a lot to do with your likelihood of getting out and voting on Election Day. Hersh says that effect was much larger than he expected. “For two people who live in the same state, of the same age and race, if they’re living with someone of their own party they’re voting at much higher rates than if they’re living with someone of a different party." But these trends vary depending on which specific parties you’re talking about. For both Republicans and Democrats, for example, being married to an independent tends to depress the person’s vote significantly more than being married to a person on the opposite side of the political spectrum. “Being married to an independent, it brings down the turnout of the partisan, and it never brings up the turnout of the independent,” he says. The graphic below shows the percentage drop in the likelihood of voting if one spouse has a different party registration from the other. In the 2012 primary, for example, a Democrat married to an independent or member of a third party was 13 percent less likely to vote than a Democrat married to another Democrat.
As the graphic shows, being married to someone of a different party appeared to affect the vote of Republicans much more than Democrats, for unknown reasons. “Depending on whether you’re a Democrat, or a Republican or an independent, the effects vary a lot,” Hersh said. “And they’re particularly strong for Republicans. A Republican married to a Democrat was 10 percentage points less likely to vote than a Republican married to a Republican. But a Democrat married to a Republican was only 3 percentage points less likely to vote than a Democrat married to a Democrat.” The paper is designed to explain what precisely is happening, not why it’s happening, so the researchers don’t know exactly why a spouse’s political party changes a person’s likelihood of voting. But they speculate that the reason could be twofold: that people who are less politically active are more likely to marry outside of their own party and that living together might influence a person’s politics and willingness to vote. Some people of different parties, for example, might have the feeling that their votes are “canceling each other out” and decide to stay at home on the sofa instead. You might also like:
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Among those on John McCain's list is Joe Lieberman, who is a quasi-Democrat, or is an independent Democrat.
His ally, Connecticut Independent Democrat Joseph Lieberman, a cosponsor of the measure, says he's confident McCain will come around.
The highlight of the first full day was an independent Democrat who got the crowd cheering for Bill Clinton, of all people.
Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee who was re-elected last year as an independent and who calls himself an independent Democrat.
McCain, who attracted independent and Democrat voters to his presidential campaign, said he thinks the GOP can maintain or increase its narrow four-seat majority in the House.
Evan Bayh (Indiana), Kent Conrad (North Dakota) and Ben Nelson (Warren Buffett) were already on board, and this week Connecticut Independent-Democrat Joe Lieberman and Virginia's Jim Webb came around.
Joe Lieberman, the Connecticut Independent-Democrat, voted against it.
After the first round of counting Bill Etheridge (UKIP), Cath Hannon (Independent), Ayoub Khan (Liberal Democrat), Mike Rumble (Independent) and Bishop Derek Webley (Independent) were eliminated.
Joe Lieberman, the renegade independent (once a Democrat) who endorsed McCain -- and said some nasty things about Obama at the GOP convention.
Listen, I'm asking you -- vote for anybody else -- Democrat, independent, Republican -- anybody who shares your views about how this country should move forward.
Joe Lieberman, a Democrat turned Independent, on climate change.
Senator JOHN KERRY (Democrat, Massachusetts): Who better than Barack Obama to turn a new page in American politics so that Democrat, independent and Republican alike can look to leadership that unites to find a common ground.
"All I ask of any American, conservative, moderate, independent, or enlightened Democrat, is to judge my record as a whole, and accept that I am not in the habit of making promises to my country that I do not intend to keep, " he said.
Why doesn't Mr McCain pick Joe Lieberman, a prominent Democrat turned independent? (The senators are seen so often in each other's company that they might be Siamese twins.) And why doesn't Barack Obama pick Chuck Hagel, a Nebraska Republican and decorated Vietnam war veteran who has been one of the loudest critics of the Iraq war?
But first, what do a Republican, a Democrat, an Independent grandma, and a Jewish cowboy have in common?
We may be white, black, or brown, young, old, Republican, Democrat, or independent.
The most significant difference between Joe Lieberman-independent and Joe Lieberman-Democrat would be the party affiliation printed in the newspapers.
Also standing in the Gloucestershire police and crime commissioner elections are Victoria Atkins (Conservative), Rupi Dhanda (Labour), Alistair Cameron (Liberal Democrat) and independent Martin Surl.
And whether you're a Democrat, an independent, or a Republican, all of us should be worried about the fact that we have been running the credit card on -- in the name of future generations.
The candidates for the Wadebridge East ward are: Brian Bennetts (Conservative), Collin Brewer (Independent), Roderick Harrison (UKIP), Adrian Jones (Labour), Steve Knightley (Liberal Democrat), Sarah Maguire (Independent).
Election candidates announced so far are: Craig Clarke (Independent), Tim Collins (Independent), George Ferguson (Independent), Geoff Gollop (Conservative), Neil Maggs (Respect), Spud Murphy (Independent), Eric Mutch (Independent), Daniella Radice (Green), Marvin Rees (Labour), Jon Rogers (Liberal Democrat) and Andy Thorne (Independent).
Joe Lieberman, the Democrat-turned-Independent senior senator from Connecticut and 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee.
And every voter out there -- Democrat, Republican, independent -- is furious about what happened.
The deal would need support from all 32 Liberal Democrat, Labour, independent and Green members, which Mr Williams said was unlikely.
The message you all sent when you elected me, the message that was sent this past month -- whether you're Democrat, Republican, independent -- you're out of patience.
Geithner, who is neither Republican nor Democrat but a registered Independent, won the nomination after President Obama was elected in 2008, despite a controversy over his tax returns.
Eliminated on first preference votes were: Liberal Democrat Brian Blake, Independent Graham Caderwood, Independent Ivan Jordan, Independent Tam Macpherson, Independent William Morris, Independent John Smith, UKIP candidate Robert Smith (UKIP) and Labour candidate Nicky Williams.
Establishment Republican leaders seek to maintain their political power by whispering romantic sweet nothings into the ears of grassroots conservatives, but they continue to govern as if they are the reincarnation of Republican-turned-Independent (and soon to turn Democrat) Charlie Crist.
If we're going to do multi-state insurance so that people can go across state lines, I've got to be able to go to an independent health care expert, Republican or Democrat, who can tell me that this won't result in cherry-picking of the healthiest going to some and the least healthy being worse off.
Liberal Democrat leader Chris Holley and his independent deputy John Hague face questions about their conduct.
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NEW YORK, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The primaries are over and the sprint is on for the final six weeks of campaigning before Election Day 2010. If the election for the House of Representatives were held today, two in five registered voters (40%) would vote for the Democratic candidate and 36% would vote for the Republican candidate with one in five (19%) not at all sure.
MIDTERM ELECTIONS – TWO-PARTY RACE
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Not at all sure
These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,620 adults surveyed online between September 14 and 20, 2010 by .
The parties are mostly holding their bases with voters, as 84% of Republicans are voting for their party's candidate and 81% of Democrats say they are voting for their candidate. However, Independents are favoring Republicans, as 35% would vote for that party's candidate for Congress and 23% would vote for the Democratic candidate, while one-quarter of Independents (27%) are still not at all sure for whom they would vote.
MIDTERM ELECTIONS – TWO-PARTY RACE
Political Party
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Not at all sure
Among those registered voters who say they are absolutely certain to vote this November, 43% would vote for the Republican candidate, 41% for the Democratic candidate and 12% are not at all sure. The Republicans have a larger advantage when it comes to interest in the election. Almost half (48%) of those registered voters who are extremely or very interested in the election say they would vote for the Republican candidate while 38% would vote for the Democratic candidate.
MIDTERM ELECTIONS – TWO-PARTY RACE
Voting Intention
Absolutelycertainwill vote
Absolutely/VeryCertain willVote
ProbablyWill Vote
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Not at all sure
Adding in a Tea Party Candidate
If there is a third candidate in the race, representing the Tea Party, Democrats can breathe a small sigh of relief. Among registered voters, 41% would vote for the Democratic candidate, 23% would vote for the Republican, 13% would vote for the Tea Party candidate and 23% are still not at all sure. Among those voters who say they are absolutely certain to vote, 42% would vote Democrat, 26% would vote Republican, 17% would vote for the Tea Party candidate and 15% are not at all sure.
MIDTERM ELECTIONS – THREE-PARTY RACE
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Tea Party candidate
Not at all sure
Looking at it by party, Democrats continue to vote for their party's candidate, as 80% would vote for the Democrat in the race. Republicans, Independents and Tea Party supporters all split their votes. Among Republican voters, three in five (59%) would vote Republican and one in five (21%) would vote for the Tea Party candidate, with 18% not at all sure. Among Independents, 27% would vote for the Democratic candidate, 21% would vote for the Tea Party candidate, 18% would vote for the Republican candidate and over one-third (35%) are not at all sure for whom they would vote. It is just as divided for Tea Party supporters with 13% voting for the Democratic candidate, 36% voting Republican, 31% voting for the Tea Party candidate and 20% who say they are still not at all sure.
MIDTERM ELECTIONS – THREE-PARTY RACE
Political Party
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Tea Party candidate
Not at all sure
Currently, Americans don't think Congress is doing a good job. Almost nine in ten (87%) give Congress negative ratings while just 13% give it positive ones. What remains to be seen on November 2nd is if voters are mainly unhappy with Democrats - after all, they are the ones in power, or with all incumbents. Seeing so many incumbents defeated in primaries, as well as seeing establishment candidates lose, as well, makes it seem as if these midterm elections are a complete game-changer. Of course, since Democrats are in power, they may suffer more losses, but it would not be a surprise to see unexpected Republicans lose, too. The morning of November 3rd should provide a very interesting post-mortem to this campaign season.
TABLE 1MIDTERM ELECTIONS – TWO-PARTY RACE"If the election for the House of Representatives was being held today, would you vote for the Republican or the Democratic candidate?"
Base: U.S. adults registered to vote
Political Party
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Not at all sure
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 1BMIDTERM ELECTIONS – TWO-PARTY RACE – VOTING INTEREST AND INTENTION"If the election for the House of Representatives was being held today, would you vote for the Republican or the Democratic candidate?"
Base: U.S. adults registered to vote
Voting Interest
Voting Intention
Extremely/VeryInterested(NET)
Interested
NotInterested(NET)
Absolutelycertainwill vote
Absolutely/VeryCertain willVote
ProbablyWill Vote
WillNotVote(NET)
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Not at all sure
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 2MIDTERM ELECTIONS – THREE-PARTY RACE"If the election for the House of Representatives was being held today and all three were an option, who would you vote for?"
Base: U.S. adults registered to vote
Political Party
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Tea Party candidate
Not at all sure
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 2BMIDTERM ELECTIONS – THREE-PARTY RACE – VOTING INTEREST AND INTENTION"If the election for the House of Representatives was being held today and all three were an option, who would you vote for?"
Base: U.S. adults registered to vote
Voting Interest
Voting Intention
Extremely/VeryInterested NET)
Interested
NotInterested(NET)
AbsolutelyCertainto vote
Absolutely/Very Certainwill Vote
ProbablyWill Vote
WillNotVote(NET)
Democratic candidate
Republican candidate
Tea Party candidate
Not at all sure
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% * indicates less than 0.5%
TABLE 3CONGRESS' OVERALL JOB RATING"How would you rate the overall job Congress is doing?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Political Party
   Excellent
   Pretty good
   Only fair
   Poor
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 4CONGRESS' OVERALL JOB RATING – TREND"How would you rate the overall job the Congress is doing?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Negative**
*Positive = excellent or pretty good.  **Negative = only fair or poor.
Note: Prior to March, 2009, this question was asked by telephone.
TABLE 5Voting Likelihood"An election for the House of Representatives will be held on November 2nd.  How certain are you that you will vote?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Political Party
    Absolutely certain I will vote
    Very certain I will vote
    I probably will vote
Will Not Vote
    I probably will not vote
    I am certain I will not vote
Not sure if I will vote
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
"*" indicates less than 0.5%; "- " indicates no response
TABLE 6ELECTION INTEREST"How interested are you in the House of Representatives elections this year?"
Base: All U.S. adults
Political Party
Interested
    Extremely interested
    Somewhat interested
    Interested
Not Interested
    Somewhat interested
    Not interested at all
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% * indicates less than 0.5%
TABLE 7TEA PARTY FAMILIARITY"How familiar are you with the Tea Party Movement?"
Base: All U.S. adults
August2010
September2010
Familiar (NET)
    Very familiar
    Somewhat familiar
    Not that familiar
Not familiar (NET)
    Not at all familiar
    Never heard of
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 8TEA PARTY SUPPORT"Do you support or oppose the Tea Party Movement?"[Asked of all adults excluding those who are "not at all familiar" or "have never heard of" the Tea Party Movement]
Base: All U.S. adults
Political Party
Support (NET)
    Strongly support
    Somewhat support
Oppose (NET)
    Somewhat oppose
    Strongly oppose
Not at all sure
Not asked/Not familiar at all/Never heard of
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
TABLE 9TEA PARTY MEMBER"Would you describe yourself as a member of the Tea Party?"[Asked of all adults excluding those who are "not at all familiar" or "have never heard of" the Tea Party Movement]
Base: All U.S. adults
Political Party
Not asked/Not familiar at all/ Never heard of
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding
Methodology
This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between September 14 to 20, 2010 among 2,620 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.
Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
The results of this Harris Poll may not be used in advertising, marketing or promotion without the prior written permission of Harris Interactive.
The Harris Poll® #112, September 28, 2010
By Regina A. Corso, SVP, Harris Poll, Public Relations and Youth Research, Harris Interactive
About Harris Interactive
is one of the world's leading custom market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers expertise in a wide range of industries including healthcare, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Serving clients in over 215 countries and territories through our North American, European, and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us – and our clients – stay ahead of what's next. For more information, please visit .
Press Contact:
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Harris Interactive
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