Is political polarization worse than it's been in the past?
Pew and USC sources say polarization is at its highest in decades, while another USC-cited view and Frances Lee (Knowable) say current levels are not unprecedented or reflect predictable voting rather than greater policy distance.
Short answer: Yes—by most measures, especially in the U.S., but with important nuances
Political polarization today is generally considered worse than at almost any point in modern history, though scholars distinguish between different types of polarization, and some caution against overly simplistic "worse than ever" narratives.
The case that it's worse than ever
Elite/Congressional polarization: A Pew Research Center analysis finds that, on average, Democrats and Republicans are farther apart ideologically today than at any time in the past 50 years. Both parties have grown more ideologically cohesive—there are now only about two dozen moderate Democrats and Republicans left on Capitol Hill, versus more than 160 in 1971-72. Some researchers even go further back: ideological distance between the parties began to grow during the 1970s to the extent that Congress is now more polarized than at any time since the late 1870s Reconstruction Era.
Public/mass polarization: Republicans and Democrats are more divided along ideological lines – and partisan antipathy is deeper and more extensive – than at any point in recent history. The ideological middle has been shrinking for decades—over the past twenty years, the number of Americans in the "tails" of this ideological distribution has doubled from 10% to 21%, while the center has shrunk: 39% currently take a roughly equal number of liberal and conservative positions.
Partisan hostility (the "affective" dimension): This may be the starkest trend. Pew Research Center polling reveals a sharp rise in partisan hostility: in 2022, 72% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats viewed the opposing party as more immoral than other Americans—up dramatically from 47% and 35% in 2016. Public perception matches this: a September 2024 Gallup poll found that a record 80 percent of U.S. adults believe Americans are greatly divided on the most important values, while just 18 percent believe the country is united.
Recent ideological shifts: In 2024, the shares of Republicans identifying as conservative and Democrats identifying as liberal both reached record highs.
International context: This isn't purely a U.S. phenomenon. In the past decade, political scientists have uncovered a similar trend across the globe—not just in countries with two dominating political parties but in nations with diverse societal compositions, from well-established multiparty democracies like Switzerland, Denmark and New Zealand, to emerging economies like Bulgaria, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Poland. The U.S. stands out even here: the US has experienced the most rapid growth in affective polarization among the general electorate since 1980 among the 12 OECD countries considered in a 2024 study, with five other countries experiencing smaller increases in polarization, and six experiencing declines.
Important caveats
Not everyone agrees polarization is unprecedented or that it means what people assume:
Bottom line
If you're asking about elite polarization in Congress and emotional/tribal hostility between ordinary partisans, the data strongly supports "yes, this is genuinely unusual by modern historical standards"—arguably the worst since the late 19th century or, by some measures, since the Civil War era. But if you're asking whether Americans disagree more on actual policy substance than in the past, the evidence is much less clear, and some scholars argue the "worse than ever" framing overstates how novel today's divisions really are.
Citations (15)
- The polarization in today’s Congress has roots that go back decades | Pew Research Center
Source excerpt: “Indeed, a Pew Research Center analysis finds that, on average, Democrats and Republicans are farther apart ideologically today than at any time in the...”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Democrats and Republicans are farther apart ideologically today than at any time in the past 50 years.
- The polarization in today’s Congress has roots that go back decades | Pew Research Center
Source excerpt: “Both parties have grown more ideologically cohesive. There are now only about two dozen moderate Democrats and Republicans left on Capitol Hill, versu...”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: Only about two dozen moderate Democrats and Republicans remain in Congress, versus more than 160 in 1971-72.
- Political polarization at its worst since the Civil War - USC Today
Source excerpt: “Following a period of a much more balanced Congress during the middle of the 20th century, ideological distance between the parties began to grow duri...”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Ideological distance between the parties grew from the 1970s; Congress is more polarized than at any time since the late 1870s.
- Political Polarization in the American Public | Pew Research Center
Source excerpt: “Republicans and Democrats are more divided along ideological lines – and partisan antipathy is deeper and more extensive – than at any point in recent...”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Republicans and Democrats are more ideologically divided and partisan antipathy is deeper than at any point in recent history.
- Political Polarization in the American Public | Pew Research Center
Source excerpt: “Over the past twenty years, the number of Americans in the “tails” of this ideological distribution has doubled from 10% to 21%. Meanwhile, the center...”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: Americans in the ideological tails doubled from 10% to 21% over twenty years while the center shrank.
- The 'Great Divide': Understanding US Political Polarization | Syracuse University Today
Source excerpt: “Pew Research Center polling reveals a sharp rise in partisan hostility: in 2022, 72% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats viewed the opposing party as ...”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: In 2022, 72% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats viewed the other party as more immoral, up from 2016.
- Why Polarization Is a Problem | Carnegie
Source excerpt: “A September 2024 Gallup poll found that a record 80 percent of U.S. adults believe Americans are greatly divided on the most important values, while j...”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: September 2024 Gallup poll: record 80% believe Americans are greatly divided on important values.
- U.S. Political Parties Historically Polarized Ideologically
Source excerpt: “In 2024, the shares of Republicans identifying as conservative and Democrats identifying as liberal both reached record highs. ”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: In 2024, shares of conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats reached record highs.
- Divided we stand: The rise of political animosity
Source excerpt: “But in the past decade, political scientists have uncovered a similar trend across the globe — not just in countries with two invariably dominating po...”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Political scientists have found a similar polarization trend across the globe, in diverse countries.
- Why are we so politically polarized? Here’s what research says | Knowable Magazine
Source excerpt: “The US has experienced the most rapid growth in affective polarization among the general electorate since 1980 among the 12 OECD countries considered ...”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: US had the most rapid growth in affective polarization since 1980 among 12 OECD countries in a 2024 study.
- Political polarization at its worst since the Civil War - USC Today
Source excerpt: “Some political scientists have pointed out that viewed within the context of data from the last two centuries todays levels of polarization are n...”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: Some political scientists say that over two centuries of data, today's polarization is not an alarming anomaly.
- Divided we stand: The rise of political animosity
Source excerpt: “However, that doesn’t mean politicians are farther apart on policy issues than in the past, says Frances Lee, a political scientist now at Princeton U...”
attribution, article, points to no. Claim: Frances Lee argues politicians are not necessarily farther apart on policy than in the past.
- Divided we stand: The rise of political animosity
Source excerpt: “In fact, Lee adds, while some measurements suggest more division, what they actually show is simply that the voting behavior of politicians has become...”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: Measurements show politicians' voting behavior has become more predictable, unlike bipartisan support for the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
- Political Polarization in America: A Historical Analysis | Divided We Fall
Source excerpt: “For many years, there was little evidence that the American people were committed to a coherent ideology. To be sure, many individuals felt a close at...”
evidence, article, neutral. Claim: Historically there was little evidence the public held coherent ideology, so mass polarization was less dramatic than elite polarization.
- Divided we stand: The rise of political animosity
Source excerpt: “While there is no one explanation for why countries worldwide are fraying into extremes, recent findings suggest a common denominator: namely, that th...”
evidence, article, neutral. Claim: Key driver of polarization is emotion and identity rather than policy positions, known as affective polarization.