Mellman: Extremism is more bipartisan than Democrats want to believe

It’s obvious to us Democrats that the GOP is the party of extremists and extremism.   

 How extreme? On a recent CNN town hall, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, attempting to exude moderation, argued there are elements of an abortion policy we could all agree on.  

 Like what? No death penalty for women who have abortions. 

She’s so extreme that abjuring the death penalty for those who’ve had abortions sounds moderate to her.  

Republicans want to outlaw abortion; they’re willing to default on government debts already incurred; they believe children should be able to buy weapons of war; they reject efforts to combat the climate crisis.  

 For heaven’s sake, the Republican Party is led by Donald Trump, an extremist if there ever was one.  

Of course, we Democrats have some extremists too, but they are far fewer and far less extreme than the Republicans. It’s all readily apparent to us. But not to ordinary voters.   

Equal numbers see the two parties as extreme. Three pools of evidence help raise the curtain on voters’ views.  

First, a Votecast survey, conducted by University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center in conjunction with the 2022 election, asked whether each party was “too tolerant of extremist groups.” Fifty-three percent found Republicans too tolerant of extremists and an identical 53 percent said the same of Democrats.    

In response to another question, 47 percent said Republicans need more moderate candidates while 49 percent expressed the same desire for Democrats.  

Equal numbers said Democrats and Republicans welcome extremism and that each party needed more centrist candidates.  

A second set of evidence comes from a survey we conducted among Latino voters in Nevada before the 2022 election together with our colleagues at Castillo and Associates.   

As far as Nevada Latinos were concerned, one of the most apt descriptions of the Democratic Party was that it is “too willing to embrace socialist policies.” Fifty-five percent thought that phrase described Democrats at least pretty well. Only 34 percent demurred.   

Not surprisingly, these voters did not see the GOP embracing socialism, but just 50 percent believed the Republican Party was too racist. So, more thought Democrats were too socialist than that Republicans were too racist.  

More Nevada Latinos perceived Republicans as working to keep their neighborhoods safe from crime than felt that way about Democrats, and more believed Democrats were too liberal than that Republicans were too conservative.  Again, that’s among a segment we consider part of the Democratic base.   

Finally, we turn to a recent Franklin & Marshall poll that approached the matter differently. They asked Pennsylvania voters which party was more mainstream (which party “expresses views that are CLOSEST to the views of most Americans”) on seven issues.  

Democrats were more mainstream on three — abortion, Social Security/Medicare and elections. Republicans won out on four topics — immigration, gun control, government spending and policing and public safety.   

The biggest differences were the Democratic advantages on abortion (+27 points) and Social Security/Medicare (+21 points); and Republican leads on immigration (+27) and public safety/policing (+21).  

The two parties were mainstream on different issues, but both present as mainstream on some topics, extreme on others.  

Three surveys, each employing different questions. Three populations (U.S. voters, Nevada Latinos and Pennsylvania voters).   

One clear conclusion: Neither party has a lock on the extremist label. While we Democrats are quick to assign that moniker to the Republicans alone, voters overall and in key segments, whether demographic or geographic, attach it to both parties.   

Over the years I’ve argued here that party brands have become critical in determining electoral outcomes. Republicans have clear image problems, but Democrats are remiss if we are not cognizant of our own brand weaknesses.  

That voters don’t clearly see the GOP as the more extreme party is one of those weaknesses. Simply lobbing more attacks on the Republicans won’t be sufficient to fix it.    

Mellman is president of The Mellman Group and has helped elect 30 U.S. senators, 12 governors and dozens of House members. Mellman served as pollster to Senate Democratic leaders for more than 20 years, as president of the American Association of Political Consultants, a member of the Association’s Hall of Fame, and is president of Democratic Majority for Israel.