XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: jimin999999@nine.net   
      
   Democrats Racially Diverse; Republicans Mostly White   
      
   Democrats and independents grow more diverse since 2008   
   by Frank Newport   
      
   PRINCETON, NJ -- Non-Hispanic whites accounted for 89% of Republican self-   
   identifiers nationwide in 2012, while accounting for 70% of independents   
   and 60% of Democrats. Over one-fifth of Democrats (22%) were black, while   
   16% of independents were Hispanic.   
      
   Racial and Ethnic Composition of U.S., by Party ID, 2012   
      
   These results are based on more than 338,000 interviews conducted as part   
   of Gallup Daily tracking in 2012, and clearly underscore the distinct   
   racial profiles of partisan groups in today's political landscape.   
      
       Republicans are overwhelmingly non-Hispanic white, at a level that is   
   significantly higher than the self-identified white percentage of the   
   national adult population. Just 2% of Republicans are black, and 6% are   
   Hispanic.   
       Seventy percent of Americans who identify as independents are white,   
   but independents have the highest representation of Hispanics (16%) of the   
   three groups. Eight percent of independents are blacks.   
       Democrats remain a majority white party, but four in 10 Democrats are   
   something other than non-Hispanic white. More than one in five Democrats   
   are black, roughly twice the black representation in the adult population.   
      
   Racial and Ethnic Groups Gravitate Toward Different Parties   
      
   Looked at differently, these party composition patterns reflect major   
   differences in the way Americans in various racial and ethnic groups   
   identify their political affiliation.   
      
       Almost two-thirds of blacks identify as Democrats, with most of the   
   rest identifying as independents. Only 5% of blacks nationwide identify as   
   Republicans.   
       Half of Hispanics identify as independents, although the majority of   
   the rest identify as Democrats. This is despite their high level of   
   approval and strong majority voting support for Democratic President Barack   
   Obama. Relatively few Hispanics (13%) identify as Republicans.   
       Whites are the most politically diverse of the three major racial and   
   ethnic segments, with between 26% and 38% identifying with one of the three   
   partisan groups. Whites tilt slightly toward being independents or   
   Republicans rather than Democrats. The large white concentration of   
   Republican identifiers, in short, is caused by a dearth of nonwhites self-   
   identifying with the GOP, rather than a monolithic Republican orientation   
   among whites.   
      
   Party ID in U.S. Within Racial and Ethnic Groups   
      
   Although Asians and other races make up a small proportion of the U.S.   
   population, the data show that the political pattern they follow is quite   
   similar to that of Hispanics: they are most likely to identify as   
   independents, second-most likely to identify as Democrats, and least likely   
   to identify as Republicans.   
      
   Racial Breakdown of Independents and Democrats Has Shifted Most Since 2008   
      
   The racial and ethnic composition of the Republican Party today is similar   
   to what it was in 2008, the year when Gallup began its daily tracking.   
   There have been essentially no changes in the percentage of GOP identifiers   
   who are white, black, and Hispanic.   
      
   Independents have become more Hispanic since 2008 (and slightly more   
   black), while Democrats have become more black and more Hispanic. Phrased   
   differently, the independent and Democratic segments of the U.S. population   
   are now less white than they were in 2008, reflecting the uptick in the   
   U.S. nonwhite population over these five years.   
      
      
   One of the more important realities in American politics today is the   
   substantial divergence in the racial and ethnic composition of the major   
   political parties. Almost nine in 10 Republicans are white, in stark   
   contrast to the racial and ethnic composition of the overall adult   
   population. On the other hand, the Democratic Party is disproportionately   
   nonwhite.   
      
   The future of the two major political parties depends on two factors. The   
   first is whether these patterns of party identification change in the years   
   ahead. The ability of the Republican Party to make inroads among nonwhites   
   has been much discussed in recent months, particularly the GOP's efforts to   
   improve on the 13% allegiance that Gallup data show it obtains from   
   Hispanics. Another path to growth for the Republican Party would be an   
   increase in its penetration into the white sector of the population, only   
   35% of which now identifies as Republican. On the other hand, the   
   Democratic Party will grow if it too can extend its identification among   
   whites, and maintain or strengthen its position among nonwhites.   
      
   A second factor that will affect the future of the political parties in the   
   U.S. is straightforward demographics. Projections show that the nonwhite   
   proportion of the American adult population will grow in the years ahead.   
   This means that if current partisan allegiance patterns prevail, the size   
   of the Democratic base will be in a better position to grow than will the   
   Republican base.   
   Survey Methods   
      
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