Poll: Which Party Is Farther From the Center?

Pew asked 1,082 poll respondents how they saw each party's ideological alignment. By a hair, the Democratic Party is viewed as farther from the center: 58% say the Democratic Party is either liberal or very liberal, while 56% say the Republican Party is either conservative or very conservative. Both collect 26% who see them as moderate.

It's debatable how the parties want to be seen, but Democrats seem to want to appear more centrist, while in many cases, the base in conservative districts demands a conservative Republican Party; and in those cases, Republican lawmakers and candidates have complied.