09/24/2024 | Press release | Archived content
Political differences between Democrats and Republicans have increased, but many observers conclude that these differences are not large enough to explain the partisan vitriol that characterizes American politics today. To explain this gap, they suggest that polarization has an affective, or emotional, rather than a cognitive, or reasoned, basis. Although plausible, this account has been too rapidly and uncritically accepted despite major research questions that have not been addressed.
Takeaways
Morris Fiorina is a professor of political science at Stanford University and a senior fellow of the Hoover Institution. He has written or edited fourteen books, most recently Who Governs? Emergency Powers in the Time of COVID. An elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, Fiorina has received career achievement awards from two sections of the American Political Science Association.
A continuation of the Hoover Institution's Unstable Majorities series from the 2016 election season, the first half of this essay series leads up to the November 2024 elections with general discussions of the past and present political situation, of particular interest to students and professionals in the fields of political science and political journalism. The second half continues post-election with analyses focused specifically on the 2024 elections, addressed to a wider audience. The series begins by looking back at the issues raised in 2016 that continue today.