At some point or another over the last decade, Democrats have won the most votes but lost national elections for the presidency, the House and the Senate. Partisan gerrymandering is just one of the reasons the Democrats are at such a disadvantage. But the Supreme Court’s decision on gerrymandering Thursday […] Read more »
A Single Day Exposed the Central Tension Driving American Politics
The same explosive question rumbled through this week’s Supreme Court ruling on the 2020 census and the two nights of Democratic presidential debates: How will America respond to the propulsive demographic, social, and economic changes remaking the nation? The juxtaposition of these two events, purely coincidental, underscored how much of […] Read more »
Who Says Foreign Policy Doesn’t Win Elections?
Rolling into the 2020 election, President Donald Trump is bound to tout his record on foreign policy as a resounding success. While he hasn’t built a wall and expensed it to Mexico, he has followed through on pledges to withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement and the Paris climate accord, […] Read more »
There Are Really Two Distinct White Working Classes
… Marginal shifts in partisan balloting by the white working class have been a crucial determinant in the outcome of elections since 1968. This non-college white constituency — pollster shorthand for both the white working class and the white middle class without college degrees — makes up a massive bloc […] Read more »
New Stanford research shows difference in language used by Republicans and Democrats
New Stanford linguistics research has analyzed how Republicans and Democrats use different language when discussing mass shootings on social media and found that Republicans talk more about the shooter and Democrats focus more on the victims. Focusing on posts shared on the social media platform Twitter, the researchers found that […] Read more »
When primary debates really matter (and when they don’t)
The first debates of the 2020 Democratic primary season are nearly upon us. Over the course of two nights on Wednesday and Thursday, 20 candidates will hope for a breakout moment. Sometimes a candidate hitting the right key at the right moment can turn a debate into a game changer. […] Read more »