Drooping Party ID Is Independent Viagra

Former Republican Arlen Specter brought the issue of party identification to the forefront yesterday when he left the GOP and became a Democrat, referencing the changing party-ID landscape in his home state of Pennsylvania, where some voters have made the same switch he did.

A Pew study, released today, shows that GOP party identification has slipped nationwide, but it's important to note that the same is true for the Democratic Party: voters are identifying less with both parties in 2009, while more are claiming themselves as independents. In the last five months, GOP ID has slid from 26 percent to 22 percent, Democratic ID has slid from 39 percent to 33 percent, and independent ID has risen from 30 percent to 39 percent.

See a trend chart after the jump:

The same is true in Pennsylvania, where GOP ID now sits at 27 percent, Democratic ID at 38 percent, and independent ID at 29 percent (based on 384 interviews conducted by Pew this year).

So there's no question Specter has defected to the more popular party in his home state (and nationwide), but as Specter found himself uncomfortable as a Republican, many Americans are similarly without a party to call home.

This article available online at:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2009/04/drooping-party-id-is-independent-viagra/16858/