The Phantom of a Polarized America

<p><b>Indicates how the rightward shift in the ideology of House Republicans has been mistaken for a broader polarization of both parties as well as voters.</b></p><p>There is a widespread belief that American politics is becoming more polarized in the sense that the Republican Party and electorate are becoming more conservative while the Democratic Party and electorate are becoming more liberal. But is this truly the case? <i>The Phantom of a Polarized America</i> places widely held scholarly assumptions about the polarization of American politics under the microscope and tests them to determine their veracity. In the case of Congress Manabu Saeki reveals that contrary to popular beliefs polarization is largely due to the rightward shift of Republican legislators without any corresponding leftward shift by Democratic legislators. The conservative shift of House Republican ideology has produced a rightward shift of Republican voters and conservative voters in the Democratic Party have switched to the Republican Party resulting in a more liberal Democratic Party overall. Saeki concludes that the so-called polarization of American politics is largely a phantom being; in truth it is a neo-conservative movement led by House Republicans.</p>