A Trickle Out Of The Republican Party

American Prospect: Why Some Are Opting To Run As Democrats

(The American Prospect)  This column was written by Benjamin Weyl.

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What’s the matter with Kansas Republicans? In a state where Bush captured over 60 percent of the vote in 2004, a tiny revolution is taking place, with more and more Republicans running as Democrats in state elections. Its ripples may be spreading throughout the country.

This November, nine former Kansas Republicans are running as Democrats, including one for the office of lieutenant governor and another for that of attorney general. For years, moderates and conservatives have been battling within the Kansas Republican Party, mostly over social issues such as abortion and evolution. As moderates get pushed out, they sometimes wind up with a ‘D’ next to their name.

“It was a drip, now it’s a trickle,” says Joe Aistrup, head of the department of political science at Kansas State University. Mark Parkinson is part of that trickle. Parkinson chaired the state GOP from 1999 to 2003 but is now running as the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor. “They were fixated on ideological issues that really don't matter to people’s everyday lives,” he told the London Observer in June. “What matters is improving schools and creating jobs. I got tired of the theological debate over whether Charles Darwin was right.”

The success of Governor Kathleen Sebelius is certainly one of the reasons for the Democratic growth. Eschewing social issues, she has received praise for eliminating a $1.1 billion budget deficit, strengthening public education, and creating jobs in Kansas, much of which she did with strong bipartisan support. Touted as a potential vice presidential candidate in 2008, she will likely be re-elected in November. A July Rasmussen poll showed her with a double-digit lead over potential Republican contenders and a 70 percent favorability rating. With those strengths, she has been able to woo Parkinson and other moderate Republicans away from a party that increasingly does not seem to want them. According to Aistrup, this “could be a harbinger of a more large-scale movement out of the Republican Party in Kansas.”

But Kansas isn’t alone. In South Carolina, 5th Circuit Solicitor Barney Giese, a longtime Republican, has decided to run for reelection as a Democrat. “My relationship with some of the leaders of the Republican Party is damaged,” Giese told the South Carolina State in February. “Translation: The GOP tent wasn’t big enough for the moderate solicitor,” wrote State columnist Lee Bandy.

Even NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley has switched teams, according to the New York Post. “I was a Republican,” he said. “Until they lost their minds.” He is now mulling a run for governor of Alabama as a Democrat.