Opinion: Revisiting the ‘Five Tribes’ of American Voters – By Carl M. Cannon (Real Clear Politics) / February 17, 2022
It might sound improbable, but 13 months after President Trump left the White House, Americans have become even more politically polarized, according to a new RealClear Opinion Research survey, with fissures appearing among Democratic voters that mirror the profound discord roiling the Republican Party.
Despite two years of economic upheaval culminating in the worst inflation in 40 years, our divisions are not primarily economic. Instead, they are driven by a host of social and cultural flashpoints ranging from perceptions of race, immigration policy, and transgender issues to voters’ feelings about the U.S. flag – and about America itself.
Ironically, one question in the new survey did evoke a response that spanned much of the ideological spectrum – a latent desire for a third political party. A certain logic underlies that yearning: On a host of policy issues, Republicans have become more conservative, while Democrats have drifted inexorably leftward – and in a country where the prevalent impulses were historically centrist. Moreover, a new strain of populism has gained strength among voters in both parties, a phenomenon epitomized by the simultaneous appeal of Donald Trump and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
