Discuss the causes of political polarization and gridlock and the roles they play in American politics today

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Parties are often required to distinguish themselves rather markedly from the opposing party in order to appeal to extreme supporters on either side of a spectrum. With Democrats, this is often the left or liberal wing of the party, and with the Republicans this is often the right or conservative wing. However, appealing to the extreme can also leave moderates and undecided voters out in the cold. We know from research that the pressures parties face to point out sharp differences between their positions and those of the opposition often lead to a state of political polarization, which then leads to a state of political gridlock in which policy and lawmaking are halted due to a lack of consensus and bipartisanship. The effect of this is that people see government and particularly the party leadership as ineffective. The problems of political gridlock, legislative deadlocks, and high degrees of political polarization are seemingly getting worse, with research supporting this hypothesis.