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By Casey Shea Marketing Director |
August 27, 2024
Political Polarization in the United States, Explained
Americans don’t agree on everything–and we shouldn’t! We’re a democracy, and diversity of opinion and thought is what makes our country great.
What is key, even among our differences, is that we disagree civilly. As fellow Americans, we must show each other respect and find common ground and compromise to keep our great country moving forward.
But things feel different today, don’t they? No matter the issue, Americans struggle to agree on much of anything. It’s reflected in the media we consume, in our daily conversations, and it’s most obviously on display with our elected officials.
In 2023, Congress was found to be the most unproductive Congress in decades. When huge, important things happen that affect all of us, Congress seems more interested in pandering to their respective bases, scoring political points, and getting social media attention than in working together to find solutions. Even when it comes to the basics of a functioning government, Congress can barely get its act together to pass a budget or even pay our country’s debts.
What exactly are the problems with political polarization? How did we get here? And what can we do to fix things? Let’s dive in.
What does political polarization lead to?
Does any of this sound familiar?
Gridlock and Inefficiency: Polarization leads to legislative gridlock, as politicians become more focused on obstructing the agenda of the opposing party rather than finding common ground and passing meaningful legislation. This can result in government dysfunction and an inability to address the issues we care about.
Divisiveness and Lack of Social Cohesion: High levels of polarization can lead to increased social division and animosity between different political groups. This can undermine social cohesion, erode trust in democratic institutions, and exacerbate societal tensions. We even see political polarization cited as a key reason why America has fallen out of the top twenty happiest countries in the world.
Policy Paralysis: Polarization can prevent policymakers from implementing effective policies to address important issues such as healthcare, education, and climate change. As politicians become entrenched in partisan battles, policy solutions may be delayed or watered down, leading to suboptimal outcomes.
Erosion of Democratic Norms: Extreme polarization can undermine democratic norms and institutions, as politicians prioritize partisan interests over the common good. This can lead to the erosion of democratic principles such as compromise, accountability, and the rule of law.
Ineffective Governance: Polarization can weaken the effectiveness of government institutions by undermining their legitimacy and capacity to govern. When politicians prioritize partisan interests over the public good, public confidence in government institutions may decline, further exacerbating the problem.
Increased Vulnerability to External Threats: Polarized societies may be less resilient in the face of external threats, as political divisions can hinder the ability to respond cohesively to challenges such as economic crises, natural disasters, or security threats.
Economic Costs: Political polarization can have economic costs, as uncertainty and instability resulting from political gridlock or policy paralysis can discourage investment, undermine consumer confidence, and derail economic growth.
Political polarization undermines the functioning of democratic societies, weakens governance, and threatens social cohesion. Addressing polarization is crucial for preserving democratic values, promoting effective governance, and addressing the pressing challenges facing American society.
Watch Unbreaking America: Divided We Fall
Just how polarized is America? Is it getting worse over time?
“No established democracy in recent history has been as deeply polarized as the U.S.”
Those chilling words come from a recent study called What Happens When Democracies Become Perniciously Polarized?.
Beyond our gridlocked Congress, polarization is showing itself in all levels of society. Consider:
- Political violence is as high as it’s been in decades
- Americans are less likely to marry someone of a different political party
- We're more likely to cut Thanksgiving dinner short if family members of different political beliefs are sitting at the same table
- We’re even physically and geographically sorting ourselves into like-minded residential communities
(Source: Varieties of Democracy)
You can see the divide in Americans’ attitude on pretty much every issue. Go ahead and name the issue you care most about. Looking back over the last twenty years, the chances that we are more divided than ever on that issue are pretty high.
What’s driving partisan polarization?
The trends behind this polarization is a messy mix of factors. Here are just a few:
Media Influence: The media landscape today is vaster than ever, but it's also deeply polarized. We have news outlets catering to specific political ideologies, and social media algorithms tend to show us content that aligns with our existing beliefs. This creates echo chambers where we're more likely to hear opinions that reinforce our own, making it less likely for us to engage with different perspectives.
Economic Disparities: Economic inequality isn't just about money—it also influences our politics. When people feel economically marginalized, they're more inclined to support extreme political positions as a form of protest or empowerment. This economic discontent can fuel polarization by driving people towards more radical ideologies.
Geographical Sorting: There's a trend of people clustering in communities where others share similar political beliefs. Urban areas tend to lean liberal, while rural areas lean conservative. This geographic segregation reinforces ideological divides, as individuals have less exposure to differing viewpoints and are less likely to engage in constructive dialogue with those holding opposing views.
The Two-Party System: The two major political parties have become increasingly dogmatic, with less overlap between them. This party polarization extends beyond elected officials to voters themselves, contributing to an "us versus them" mentality and hindering cooperation across party lines.
Leadership Dynamics: Political leaders play a significant role in shaping the tone and direction of public discourse. When leaders engage in divisive rhetoric and prioritize partisan interests over the common good, it can worsen polarization by deepening animosities and undermining efforts to find common ground.
Social Media: Social media platforms have revolutionized how we consume and engage with information, but they've also contributed to political polarization. Algorithms designed to maximize engagement tend to prioritize content that reinforces existing beliefs, creating filter bubbles that limit exposure to diverse perspectives and deepen ideological divides.
How our electoral system itself contributes to political polarization
It’s not just media, economic disparities, and cultural issues driving political polarization. Our electoral system–how we choose candidates for office and how we vote–is itself contributing massively to our political polarization problem.
► Gerrymandering, which is the manipulation of electoral district boundaries to favor one political party or group over another, can lead to political polarization in several ways:
Safe districts: Gerrymandering creates districts that heavily favor one party over the other. In these "safe" districts, the primary election is typically the most competitive race, and candidates are more likely to cater to the extreme ends of their party's ideology to secure victory. This leads to the selection of candidates who are more extreme, contributing to polarization.
Reduced competition: By creating safe districts for one party, gerrymandering reduces electoral competition. When districts are less competitive, there is less incentive for politicians to moderate their views or compromise with the opposing party. This can lead to further polarization as politicians feel less pressure to appeal to a broader range of voters.
Polarization of representation: Gerrymandering can result in the concentration of like-minded voters within certain districts, leading to the election of representatives who are more ideologically extreme. This can exacerbate polarization in legislative bodies as these representatives may be less inclined to seek bipartisan solutions or compromise.
Disenfranchisement: Gerrymandering can disenfranchise voters by diluting the voting power of certain groups or communities. This often leads to feelings of frustration and alienation among disenfranchised voters, further deepening divisions within society.
► Or, take a look at the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) election system that most of us are required to use. It contributes to political polarization in several ways:
Two-party dominance: FPTP tends to favor a two-party system, as smaller parties often struggle to win seats due to the winner-takes-all nature of the system. This can lead to the marginalization of smaller parties and result in a political landscape dominated by two major parties, which may hold more extreme or polarized positions to differentiate themselves from each other.
Strategic voting: Under FPTP, voters may feel pressured to vote strategically rather than for their preferred candidate or party. This means voting for the candidate most likely to defeat the candidate they dislike, rather than the one they genuinely support. Strategic voting usually reinforces the dominance of the two major parties and suppresses the representation of smaller parties or more moderate candidates.
Wasted votes: In FPTP, votes cast for losing candidates or those in excess of what is needed for a candidate to win are considered “wasted.” This can discourage voters from supporting third-party or independent candidates, as they may believe such votes are ineffective. As a result, voters feel compelled to align with one of the major parties, contributing to the polarization of the political landscape.
Regionalization of support: FPTP can lead to the regionalization of political support, where certain parties or candidates are strong in specific geographic areas. This often results in the formation of regional or localized political identities, worsening divisions between different regions and contributing to political polarization.
Winner-takes-all mentality: FPTP encourages a winner-take-all mentality, where the focus is on winning elections rather than building consensus or cooperation. This leads to a more confrontational style of politics, where parties prioritize defeating their opponents over finding common ground or compromising on policy issues.
What are the solutions to political polarization?
You may look at all of this polarization and conclude that the problem is too big–a runaway train with no fix. But what if we’re making incorrect assumptions about the problem?
What if Americans aren’t actually as politically polarized as we think we are? What if Americans are misunderstanding the positions of those on the “other side”? And what if our political system is set up to favor electing the most extreme, ideological politicians who further exasperate our country’s ever-increasing political polarization?
If that’s true, then we have solutions to stop this doom loop.
1. End partisan gerrymandering with Independent Redistricting Commissions.
When you remove partisan politicians from the map-drawing process and instead let nonpartisan, independent commissions draw the voting maps, you get:
- More competitive elections
- Less extreme legislators
- Greater accountability
- Better representation
- More stability in the maps and fewer polarizing wild swings in election results
► RELATED: Does your state use Independent Redistricting Commissions?
2. Embrace reforms like Ranked Choice Voting to give voters better choices.
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) is a simple tweak to our election system that offers huge benefits. By having voters rank their favorite candidates in order of preference, RCV reduces the structural reinforcing of political polarization by:
- Forcing candidates to appeal to a broader base of voters
- Reducing negative campaigning
- Allowing third-party and independent candidates to be competitive
- Eliminating the ‘Spoiler Effect’ and ‘wasted votes’
- Encouraging collaboration
- Making voters feel more heard and increasing their satisfaction
Don’t believe us? Take a look at Alaska who in 2022 adopted a form of RCV for their elections. What happened? It led to better choices for voters, more civility among candidates, better representation, and historic change.
3. Join the movement to fix our broken political system.
We can't count on Congress to fix our broken political system. Instead, it'll take a mass movement of ordinary people working city by city, state by state to achieve positive reforms. That's exactly the strategy we follow... and it's working! RepresentUs donors and volunteers have helped win 185 victories… And we’re not done yet. Will you join us?