Answers

Do you mean in the United States? If so, the short answer is: compared with the late 20th century, yes—polarization is substantially worse in several important ways, though not “the worst ever” by every measure. What’s clearly worse now - Among elected officials: Congressional voting shows the parties are farther apart and overlap far less than at any time since at least the early–mid 20th centur

Short answer: It depends what you mean by “polarization,” but in the United States most measures show it has risen sharply since the late 1970s and is near modern highs—though not necessarily the worst in all of U.S. history. What’s gotten worse - Elite polarization: Members of Congress have sorted into two ideologically distinct parties with almost no overlap since the 1990s. The distance betwee

Short answer: it depends on what you mean by “polarization.” - In Congress (elite polarization): By modern metrics that track how consistently Democrats and Republicans vote apart, polarization is at or near the highest levels seen in more than a century. The parties are far more ideologically sorted than they were in the mid‑20th century, when you had liberal Republicans and conservative Democra

Short answer: in the United States, yes—by several key measures—but “worse than ever” depends on what you mean by polarization and which era you compare to. How it’s worse now (vs. the late 20th century): - In Congress (elite ideological polarization): Parties are farther apart on roll‑call voting than at any time in the modern record, and roughly comparable to the highly polarized late 19th cent

Short answer for the United States: yes—on several key measures, polarization today (as of 2026) is as high as, or higher than, any time in the modern record. But it depends which kind you mean. - Among elected officials (elite/ideological polarization): The ideological distance between the average Democrat and the average Republican in Congress has risen steadily since the 1970s and is now at or

Short answer: In the United States, yes—polarization today is higher than it was for much of the 20th century, though not necessarily higher than the most divisive eras in U.S. history (e.g., the 1850s–1860s). A few key nuances: - Different kinds of polarization: - Elite (in Congress): Roll‑call voting shows the parties have grown steadily farther apart since the late 1970s, reaching modern-era

Short answer: In the United States, partisan polarization among political elites is at or near its highest level in the modern era, while the public is not dramatically more “ideologically extreme” overall—but Americans do dislike and distrust the other party more than in previous decades. A quick breakdown - Elite (Congress, parties): By vote-based measures, the distance between Democrats and Re

Short answer: It depends what you mean by “polarization” and what era you’re comparing to. - Among elected officials (elite/legislative polarization): In the United States, the two parties in Congress are now more ideologically separated than at any time in many decades, and by common measures are at or near the highest levels seen since the late 19th century. There’s far less overlap between the

Short answer: Compared with most of the 20th century, yes—polarization in the United States today is higher, especially among political elites and in how partisans feel about each other. Compared with the mid‑19th century (the 1850s/Civil War era), probably not. What the evidence shows (mainly for the U.S.; tell me if you meant another country): - Elite polarization: In Congress, roll‑call voting

Short answer: In the United States, polarization is near record highs in the modern era (roughly since World War II), but it’s not unprecedented in all of U.S. history. By several standard measures, it’s worse today (as of 2026) than it was a few decades ago, though periods like the 1850s–60s were more extreme. How researchers measure it and what they find - Elite (Congress) ideological polarizat

Short answer: It depends on what you mean by “worse,” which era you’re comparing to, and whether you’re talking about leaders or the public. - Among political elites in the United States, polarization is at or near its highest level in roughly a century. Party-line voting in Congress is very common, and the two parties are ideologically sorted in ways they were not for much of the 20th century. -

Short answer: In the United States, polarization is historically high—but “worse” depends on what you mean. - Elected officials (elite polarization): By standard measures based on roll‑call votes in Congress, the ideological distance between Democrats and Republicans is at or near its highest point since the late 19th century. The parties overlap far less than they did in the mid‑20th century. -

Short answer: In the United States, polarization is very high by modern standards—but “worse than ever” isn’t quite right. - What “polarization” means: - Ideological polarization: how far apart the parties are on policy. - Affective polarization: how much partisans dislike and distrust the other side. - Sorting: whether ideology, identity, geography, and party line up more tightly than befo

Short answer: It depends on what you mean by “worse” and which country you have in mind. If you’re asking about the United States: - In Congress (elite ideological polarization): Yes—by standard measures like DW‑NOMINATE, the two parties have been drifting apart since the late 1970s and are now as far apart as at any time since the late 19th century. Party‑line voting and agenda conflict are near

Short answer (assuming you mean the United States): compared with most of the late 20th century, polarization today is higher—especially among political elites and in how partisans feel about each other—but it isn’t the worst in all of U.S. history. How it’s “worse” than the recent past - In Congress: The ideological distance between the average Democrat and Republican is at or near its highest l

Short answer (for the United States): by several important measures, yes—polarization today is worse than in much of the 20th century, though not unprecedented across all of U.S. history. What’s higher now - Elite (Congress) polarization: Roll‑call voting shows Democrats and Republicans far more separated than they were from roughly the 1930s–1970s; the distance has climbed steadily since the lat

Short answer: In the United States, yes—by several standard metrics it’s worse than in living memory, though not necessarily worse than the late 19th century or the Civil War era depending on what you measure. How scholars measure it (and what those show today): - Elite/legislative polarization: Voting records in Congress show the parties are farther apart and overlap less than at any time since

Short answer: It depends on what you mean by “polarization” and which period you’re comparing to. - In Congress (elite polarization): By roll‑call voting and ideology scores, the two parties are farther apart today than at any time since the late 1800s. So compared with most of the 20th century, yes—this is a modern high. - In the public’s issue positions (ideological polarization): Americans are

Short answer: compared to most of the 20th century, yes—by several standard metrics U.S. polarization is worse today. Compared to the most extreme periods in the 19th century (e.g., the 1850s before the Civil War), it’s not worse in terms of open political violence or system collapse. How it depends on what you mean by “worse”: - In Congress (elite ideological polarization): Near or at modern-rec

Short answer: it’s very high by several modern measures, but “worst ever” depends on what you mean and which period you compare to. What’s higher now - Elite (Congress) polarization: Voting records show the parties far apart and rarely overlapping—likely the widest gap since the late 19th century. Cross‑party coalitions are rarer, making gridlock more common. - Affective polarization: Ordinary pa

Short answer: In the United States, yes—by several important measures. In other places, it varies. How it depends on what you mean by “polarization”: - Elite (in Congress): Roll‑call voting shows Democrats and Republicans are farther apart than at any time in many decades; contemporary Congresses are at or near historic highs in party separation since the late 19th century. - Public ideology: Mos

Short answer: worse than the mid‑20th century, but not the worst in U.S. history. It depends on what you mean by “polarization”: - Elite (in Congress): Very high. Roll‑call voting shows Democrats and Republicans with almost no ideological overlap—higher than at any time since the late 19th/early 20th century. - Public opinion on issues: Mixed. Average Americans aren’t uniformly moving to extreme

Short answer: Compared with most of the 20th century—especially the 1940s–1970s—polarization in the United States is higher today. But it isn’t unprecedented in all of U.S. history; the 1850s–1870s (slavery, Civil War, Reconstruction) were more polarizing by most historical standards. What’s gotten “worse” - Elite (Congress) polarization: The two parties are now ideologically sorted with almost n

Short answer: Compared with the mid–late 20th century, yes—polarization in the U.S. is markedly higher today. Compared with the whole sweep of U.S. history, it’s high but not unprecedented: the 1850s–60s (Civil War era) and, in some ways, the late 19th century were worse. How it’s worse now (vs. recent decades) - Congress: Party-line voting and ideological distance between Democrats and Republica

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 th

Short answer: It depends what you compare and how you measure it. - In Congress (elite polarization): By roll‑call voting measures like DW‑NOMINATE, party-line distance is at or near its highest levels since the late 19th/early 20th century. There’s now almost no ideological overlap between Democratic and Republican members. So compared with roughly 1930–1980, polarization among elected officials

Short answer: mostly yes—depending on what you mean by “polarization,” and compared to which past era. - In Congress (elite polarization): By roll‑call and ideology measures, Democrats and Republicans are now farther apart than at any time since the late 19th century. There’s virtually no ideological overlap between the parties. So among elites, today is at or near a modern peak. - Among the pub

Short answer: It depends on what you mean by “polarization” and which era you compare to. In the United States today: - Congress/elite polarization: By roll‑call voting and ideology scores, the two parties are farther apart and overlap less than at any time since the early 20th century. In that sense, it’s near a modern high compared with roughly 1910–present. - Public ideology: Most Americans ha

Short answer: It depends what period you’re comparing to and what kind of polarization you mean. In the United States today, polarization is higher than it was in the mid‑to‑late 20th century, but it’s not the worst in U.S. history. How it’s “worse” than the recent past (roughly 1940s–1970s) - Elite/ideological polarization: Members of Congress from the two parties now vote much more distinctly t

Short answer: compared with most of the 20th century, yes—political polarization in the United States is higher today, but it isn’t literally unprecedented in all of U.S. history. Nuance that helps: - Two kinds of polarization - Elite (politicians): Congressional voting patterns show the parties are farther apart than at any time since the late 19th century. Cross‑party coalitions and split‑tic