"Does Party Trump Ideology? Disentangling Party and Ideology in America”

• In Event: Parties and Ideologies in American Politics

Abstract

Are people conservative (liberal) because they are Republicans (Democrats)? Or is it the reverse: people are Republicans (Democrats) because they are conservatives (liberals)? Which of these two identities is a higher priority for most people: their ideology or partisan affiliation? Though much has been said about this long-standing question, it is difficult to test because the concepts are nearly impossible to disentangle in modern America. Ideology and partisanship are highly correlated, only growing more so over time. However, the election of Donald J. Trump presents a unique opportunity to disentangle party attachment from ideological commitment. Using a research design that employs actual “conservative" and “liberal" Trump cues we find that low-knowledge respondents, strong Republicans, Trump-approving respondents, and self-described “conservatives" are the most likely to behave like party loyalists by accepting the Trump cue—in either ideological direction. These results suggest that there are a large number of party loyalists in the United States, that their claims to being a self-defined “conservative" are suspect, and that group loyalty is the much more profound motivator of opinion than are any ideological principles.

Authors

• Jeremy C. Pope, Brigham Young University

• Michael Barber, Brigham Young University