A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned a Research 2000 tracking poll showing troubling trends for certain Congressional Republicans. The latest version of the poll shows things getting worse for the party as a whole. If you really examine the data, you get a bleak picture of a shrinking regional party that appeals to a small subset of the population.
The highest approval ratings for the GOP come from Southerners (49%), Whites (29%), Men (31%), and the 30-44 year-old age group (36%). These are their best numbers!
Their worst approval ratings come from everywhere else in the country (NE=7%, MW=11%, West=13%), Blacks (4%), Latinos (6%), Independents (10%), Women (13%), and the 18-29 age group (7%).
I'm not a Republican, but if I were one, I'd have to ask: "Why do the majority of a people younger than me or with a different sex, race, or region think I'm wrong?" I say this as a progressive liberal who believes that some form of coherent conservative opposition is important for the political process. We need two parties (and perhaps more wouldn't hurt), but the current GOP identity is hopelessly out-of-step with the country as a whole. I have a feeling the future of the conservative movement lies in the hands of the libertarians, but the question remains whether the Republican Party is prepared to risk alienating the Christian Right in order to evolve and survive.
Democratic approvals in the same categories:
South 20%
NE 50%
MW 36%
West 35%
Men 27%
Women 41%
Independents 18%
Whites 25%
Blacks 65%
Latinos 49%
18-29 51%
30-44 24%
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