New Poll Shows Democrats' Gender Gap Advantage Is Broad And Deep

By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.

Ah the gender gap! It has waxed and waned in the 30-some years since its discovery, but remained pretty solidly in the Democratic camp since it was first noticed by pollsters that women voters were more liberal than their male counterparts. Today the Gallup polling organization reaffirms that fact with a new poll showing:

A new Gallup analysis of almost 150,000 interviews conducted from January through May of this year sheds new light on the substantial gender gap that exists in American politics today. Not only are women significantly more likely than men to identify as Democrats, and less likely to identify as independents, but--with only slight variation--this gap is evident across all ages, from 18 to 85, and within all major racial, ethnic, and marital-status segments of society.

Women have traditionally voted anywhere from 10-20 percent more Democratic than men, but there's good reason for that. Women are 10-20 percent or so more likely to depend on government benefits than men. Democrats are much bigger supporters of benefits for poor Americans.

Former President George W. Bush did win the support of white married women in both of his elections. Remember the so-called Security Moms? That's because married white women have the highest incomes among all female voters.

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By Bonnie Erbe