Women More Likely to Be Democrats,
Regardless of Age
by Frank Newport
Women from 18 to 85 are more Democratic than men of the same age
PRINCETON, NJ -- 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.
A recent Gallup analysis confirmed the existence of a fundamental gender gap in American
political party identification today, although the exact nature of that gap has varied over recent
years. The major distinction in political party identification today seems to revolve around the
percentage of each gender who identify as Democrats versus independents; men and women
have been similar in terms of identification with the Republican Party this year.
In the current analysis of 149,192 Gallup Poll Daily tracking interviews conducted in January
through May of this year, 41% of women identify as Democrats, some nine points higher than the
32% of men who identify as Democrats. The 34% of men in this sample who are independents
can be contrasted with the smaller 26% of women who are independents. There is little difference
by gender in terms of identification as Republicans -- 28% of men are Republicans, compared to
25% of women.
Overall, the data confirm that men currently have a much more even distribution of party
identification than do women. The range across the three partisan groups for men is just 6 points,
from a low of 28% identifying as Republicans to a high of 34% identifying as independents. On the
other hand, the range for women is a much larger 16 points, from 25% Republican to 41%
Democratic.
The Age Factor
Previous Gallup research has shown significant variations in party identification across age groups
in the American population. Baby boomers (aged 45-63) are more likely than average to identify
as Democrats, as are younger Americans in Generation Y (aged 18-29), while Generation X (aged
30-44) as well as older Americans are somewhat more Republican in orientation. The new Gallup
analysis, importantly, shows the persistence of a gender gap not only within each of these broad
age groups, but at every age, from 18 to 85, even as the overall party identification patterns shift
across the age spectrum.
The accompanying chart displays the "partisan gap" for men and for women at each age. The
broad trends certainly document the fact that the Democratic over Republican advantage varies
across age groups. Democrats have their greatest advantage among baby boomers and the very
young, and are weakest, relatively speaking, among those in their late 30s and in their mid- to late
60s. The key point for the current analysis, however, is that these variations occur
among both men and women. There is, as noted, a gender gap in this partisan orientation
measure at every age point, from 18 to 85.
Three additional charts display the gender differences in the percentages identifying as
Republicans, independents, and Democrats across all age groups. The gender gap is largest in
terms of Democratic and independent identification, and smallest for the percentage identifying as
Republicans, but for the most part, a gender gap exists for every age in terms for each of these
three partisan groups.
Racial and Ethnic Groups
There are well-known and significant differences in the patterns of partisan identification across
major racial and ethnic groups. Blacks and Asians are more Democratic in orientation than are
whites (blacks, much more so). But within each of these three groups, women are more
Democratic than men.
Overall, Hispanics (of any race) are more Democratic than non-Hispanics. But Hispanic women
are more Democratic in orientation than Hispanic men, and non-Hispanic women are more
Democratic than non-Hispanic men.
Marital Status
There are also significant differences in Democratic orientation within segments of Americans
based on their marital status. In general, Americans who are living with a domestic partner, those
who are separated but not divorced, and those who are single are more Democratic than others.
Married Americans are the least likely to be Democrats. But, as was the case for racial and ethnic
groups, the data show a gender gap within each of these groups. Single women are more
Democratic than single men, married women are more Democratic than married men, divorced
women are more Democratic than divorced men, and so forth.
Implications
Although the existence of a gender gap in American politics has been well established, the very
large sample sizes available with Gallup Poll Daily tracking allow for a more-detailed-than-normal
examination of the nature of gender differences. The remarkable finding is that women of all ages
are more Democratic in orientation than are men of the same ages, and that women of all ages
are also less likely than men of the same ages to be independent. (The differences by age in the
percentage identifying as Republican are much smaller.)
This means that whatever forces are at work that determine party identification in America today -socialization, cultural patterns, social position, social status, and life orientation -- are already in
place by the time young men and women reach the age of 18. And, these same patterns seem to
have affected or are currently affecting men and women in their 80s in a similar fashion. The fact
that the gender gap persists not only across age groups, but within major racial, ethnic, and
marital-status groups reinforces the conclusion that a gender difference in political orientation is a
fundamental part of today's American political and social scene.
Survey Methods
Results are based on telephone interviews with 149,192 national adults, aged 18 and older,
conducted Jan. 2-May 31, 2009, as part of Gallup Poll Daily tracking. For results based on the
total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of
sampling error is ±1 percentage points.
Interviews are conducted with respondents on land-line telephones (for respondents with a landline telephone) and cellular phones (for respondents who are cell-phone only).
In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can
introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.