In Texas, Republican Party Polarization Begs the Question: Are More Parties Necessary?

Two-party political systems work well in a simple political atmosphere where there are only two basic dimensions of public opinion. But in the real world, there are many issues, and many dimensions. There is a diversity of views even within parties, and this means that it isn't unusual for candidates in the same election from the same party to be very different from one another. Even with the potential confusion, Americans are much more loyal to parties than they were in the middle of the last century. As moderates and liberal Republicans leave, the GOP is becoming more and more conservative. This is why moderate Republicans like Senator Olympia Snow of Maine and Dede Scozzafava of New York are so scrutinized by their more conservative peers.

Exemplifying this conservative outrage at liberal Republicans is Rick Perry, the incumbent governor of Texas, who fights for “Texas values” and criticizes moderates’ “one-size fits all approach.” He will be running against moderate Republican Kay Baily Hutchinson, who Perry criticizes for going native by succumbing to Washington D.C. liberalism. Hutchinson, who supports embryonic stem cell research and has an ambiguous position on abortion, insists that she has been “fighting so hard” for Texan interests in the Senate. But no matter how “Texan” she might be, many still question how Republican she is compared to Perry –a good friend of Sarah Palin’s who believes that Obama is “hellbent on taking America toward a socialist country” and who hints at a second-wave attempt at succession from the union.

Ultimately the upcoming Texas gubernatorial primary begs the question: are two parties enough to represent the diversity of political interests in the United States? There is similar –albeit not as extreme- division in the Democratic party. Though, if our system is already slow to enact laws and take other forms of action, maybe adding a more complicated party structure might be the greater of the two evils.