At the turn of the 21st century, West Virginians were among the most Democratic state white electorates. Their level of Democratic partisanship was in the top five (along with Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Hawaii) and they ranked above the median state white electorate in terms of Democratic presidential voting. Over the ensuing decade and a half, the movement of white West Virginians toward the Republican party was more substantial than that for whites of nearly every other state. Viewed only from the perspective of the traditional, longstanding economic cleavage between the parties, the change is hard to explain as white West Virginians were in the most liberal group of states on issues of social welfare and economics in 2000. The change becomes more understandable if one also notes that in terms of their cultural attitudes, white West Virginians were among the most conservative in 2000. The results reported in this article suggest that a realignment among white West Virginians has taken place along the cultural dimension of American politics – a realignment that has occurred throughout the country. CONT.
Benjamin Highton (UC Davis), Political Behavior