Day: December 5, 2023💾

It's not your imagination that politics has gotten much more ideological then years ago, as most Americans now live in a state run by single political party.

 

But it wasn't always that way. There was a time 30 years ago when most Americans lived in a state that was governed by a governor and state legislature of different parties.

 

60% of Americans lived under divided state government in 1992, by the year 2023, that percentage dropped 19%.

 

For a long time, more Americans lived in states governed by solely Republicans then Democrats. But that changed in 2023, Democrats alone govern slightly more Americans in states then Republicans 41.5% to 39.2% but that's almost just a rounding error.

 

Will single party-states remain the norm in American politics? My guess is probably not because single-party run states are inherently unstable in a democracy. Single-party states tend enact unpopular policies which result in incumbents getting voted out of office. Even very blue states often elect Republicans to the governorship, such as Maryland. Likewise, very red states often elect Democrats to the governorship, such as Kentucky's governor. And houses can flip back forth, like happened in Alaska not that long ago.