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GPT-5Oct 6, 2026openai/gpt-5-2025-08-07
Is political polarization worse than it's been in the past?
Short answer: In the United States, polarization today is higher than the mid–late 20th century, and Congress is about as polarized as it’s been since the late 1800s. Among the public, dislike of the other party (“affective polarization”) is the highest in the survey era, even though most Americans haven’t moved to extreme policy positions.
What that means, in parts:
•Elites (Congress): Since the 1970s, Democrats and Republicans in Congress have steadily moved apart ideologically, with far fewer moderates or cross‑party coalitions. By most historical metrics that track roll‑call votes back to the 19th century, today’s Congress is at or near Gilded Age levels of party separation.
•The mass public on issues: Average policy views haven’t polarized to the same degree; many people still hold a mix of liberal and conservative positions. But issue positions are more consistently sorted by party than in the 1950s–1970s, so partisans agree more within party and disagree more across parties.
•Affective polarization: Since roughly the 1980s, partisans’ warmth toward their own side has modestly risen while hostility and social distance toward the other side have risen sharply. That’s why everyday interactions, media habits, and even consumer choices can feel more polarized than before.
•Behavior and elections: Straight‑ticket voting has increased, ticket‑splitting has declined, and elections are more “nationalized,” producing more safe districts and fewer incentives for cross‑party compromise.
•Historical context: The U.S. has had worse moments on some dimensions (e.g., the 1850s run‑up to the Civil War, or intense late‑19th‑century party conflict). Compared with the mid‑20th‑century low‑polarization era (roughly the 1930s–1970s), however, today is clearly more polarized across institutions and attitudes.
If you’re curious, I can show charts that track congressional polarization since the 1870s, or summarize recent research on causes (media fragmentation, nationalized parties, primaries, geography) and what’s been shown to help. If you meant another country, tell me which one and I’ll tailor the answer.