The United States of America, once envisioned to be a beacon of democracy by our founding fathers, has become increasingly polarized over the years. Online, in newspapers, and through word-of-mouth, the idea that our nation is extremely divided echoes through the voices of everyday citizens. People with different beliefs agree on only one, ironic idea: the country is split. The idea of politics pulling people apart in society is known as Political Polarization. Although this polarization has existed since the birth of politics itself, today’s reality far exceeds any polarization we have seen in the past. This polarization seemed to reach its peak in the 2016 US presidential election when Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump faced off as the US Presidential candidates, and insults were hurled from both sides and their supporters more than ever before. However, the lack of unity within the United States has only grown since then, culminating in an attempt by supporters of Trump to raid the US capital after his loss in the 2020 presidential election. As politics continue to split our nation apart, it is paramount to understand the origins of political polarization, its development in recent years, and potential ways to stop the issue from persisting.

In our first president George Washington’s farewell address, he warned of potential dangers to the country’s future. The most pressing danger, he argued, was the threat that political parties posed to the US’ development. He urged that the creation of such parties would tear Americans apart, leading to the eventual decline of his beloved nation. Although political parties existed even during Washington’s presidency, they became much more popular after he left office.

The US passed its first test in the election of 1800, dubbed the revolution of 1800. This presidential election had two primary candidates, incumbent John Adams, a Federalist, and Democrat-Republican Thomas Jefferson. After a long campaigning process, Jefferson eventually won the heart of the common man and secured the presidency — for the first time ever, and for the first time ever, there was a shift in power away from the Federalist party. What made this election so revolutionary was the peaceful transfer of power from Adams to Jefferson. With skeptics of the US’ new liberal system watching, Jefferson assumed his position with little disturbance. This unlikely transition made the US a beacon of hope for democracy around the world. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to find such peace in politics ever since. Soon after Jefferson’s election, the Democrat-Republican party housed nearly all voters and candidates, assuming the role of most popular political party in the nation. However, after the election of 1824 between political intellect John Quincy Adams and national war hero Andrew Jackson, both of whom identified as Democrat-Republicans, the party shockingly split into the Democrat and Whig parties. This turmoil was caused by what Jackson and his supporters believed was a corrupt election. Despite winning the popular vote, Jackson was rejected from the presidency and through a complex process, Adams was elected instead. From this point in time, polarization in the nation has increased drastically. Both the Democrat and Whig parties evolved in their policies over time, leaving us with two major parties that have remained to this day: the Democrats and the Republicans.

Political polarization in its current state is more extreme than it has ever been. The 2020 presidential election exposed these harms. 9 in 10 registered voters of both parties believed that a win for the opposing party would result in irreversible harm to the United States. The differing ideologies proved to be exacerbated through the Covid-19 pandemic. There was a 47% difference in how Republicans and Democrats viewed how the country dealt with the pervasive epidemic. This difference was greater than that of any other country around the world.

These issues are especially concerning given that the US is a democracy, created to embody the views of the people and work together to implement the most agreed upon policies. Jesse Shapiro, a professor of political economy at Brown University, used data spanning from 1978 to 2016 to examine the growth of polarization over the last few decades. He found that Americans rated their own party 27 points higher than they did the opposing party in 1978. The results from 2016 showed a staggering difference of nearly 46 points. American politics are becoming more polarized, and Shapiro believes it is because of political parties aligning with specific ideologies, races, and religious beliefs.

Most Americans cast their blame on politicians, wealthy political donors, and social media companies. However, even in the process of voting for such issues, polarization arises. The biggest difference between the parties was based on the role of conservative media sources on stoking divisions. Over 80% of Democrats thought these media sources had a big impact, while less than 50% of Republicans felt the same way.

Although polarization is still rampant, Americans have already taken the first step in attempting to solve this major problem: admitting that political polarization exists. Citing it to be a major issue in political development is necessary to combating the problem.

This is key in the status quo. The US has officially become a “backsliding democracy” - a democracy in which democratic ideals are being lost. Political polarization is at the root of this, with many researchers cautioning that a point of no return is quickly approaching. As political polarization continues to undermine our democracy and destroy the ideals upon which our nation was founded, a solution is necessary to ensure an opportunistic future for America.

As polarization has increased, many organizations have tried to implement solutions to slow it down. Unfortunately, this is a problem of ideology and willingness to change than a concrete correction people can make. Therefore, the best strategies to combat polarization often involve an increase of discourse and understanding between people of opposing viewpoints.

Moral ideas may be the best way to bridge the current political gap. Inter group conversations and perspective talking can allow citizens to understand more about others’ viewpoints. This will help them learn why people vote the way they do. Subordinate goals can allow for people with differing political viewpoints to notice similarities in other regards. One of the biggest issues with political polarization right now is that we often judge the character of another person simply by their political view. By viewing people holistically, we will be able to decrease our hatred for those that support other political parties.

Although these moral ideas are good and serve as a starting point for change, we also need government-based solutions to unite this country. These solutions can be in the form of changing the voting processes in government.

One change we can make is voting on policies rather than parties. Current voting occurs through a party process that gives almost all power to whichever party is in control. Due to this, voters are forced to support their party members even if they disagree with them on a few key points. Referendums can be used to achieve this. In Switzerland and California, for example, referendums are used to allow voters to decide on complex policies. Using this on a national level can greatly decrease political polarization by cutting across partisan lines and allowing the public to cast their desired vote on many issues. Another potential government change can be voting by proportion rather than majority. The US, unlike most countries, has a political landscape dominated by just 2 parties. If the US was to use proportional voting such as these other countries, they could see an increase in moderate views. Moreover, extremist candidates would receive less support as voters would be more spread out overall.

Although both of these changes have the potential to reduce polarization, they are rather unlikely. The US will not change its voting process — a defining feature of its democracy. However, discourse on such changes can inspire more local or statewide alternatives that will decrease political polarization in the long run. Furthermore, when employed in tandem with a shift in mindset using the moral ideologies discussed above, the country will be able to take steps to becoming more unified.

Another approach the US can take to solve political polarization is looking to other countries for solutions. 

Kenya has decreased its polarization through decentralization of power. In 2010, they adopted a new constitution that adopted policies to give regional officials more overall power. However, such methods may not be feasible for the US. Luckily, a new constitution isn’t necessary to create change. In Maine, legislation was passed in 2016 that created a ranked-choice voting system that prevented negative campaigning, a large cause of political hatred.

Other nations have employed stricter legal and judicial measures. In India, the Supreme Court has demanded further accountability for hate crimes and political violence. Adopting such measures in the US can decrease the amount of disdain that parties have for their opponents.

At the heart of the solution are politicians themselves. In Ecuador, former President Lenín Moreno rejected the polarizing ways of his predecessor while encouraging citizens to become more open to new ideas. Similarly, the 2019 election for mayor of Istanbul, Turkey was won by a candidate that centered his campaign around bridging the differences that the political parties of Turkey had.

Following any of these blueprints can help the US decrease polarization and breed a political environment void of mudslinging and hatred.

Some would point to technology as a leading cause of Political Polarization. A report published in the Center for Business and Human Rights of New York University determined that social media platforms can inflame existing polarization. Studies have found that social media companies have a large role in the spread of political discourse, allowing sectionalism to divide the country even more. This is especially apparent in online forums under political posts. A majority of comments fall on either end of the political spectrum: pledging entire agreement with the given post or expressing an unnecessary amount of disdain towards the same policy. As a result, technology has become a way to add to the prominent issue of polarization.

Although technology has been found to perpetuate some issues, it is also one of the few ways in which we can solve these same problems. One technology startup that is actively working to decrease polarization is AllSides. Their goal is to help free people from their political bubbles that they are currently trapped within. In doing so, they hope to expose all people to more diverse views to allow them to develop their own ideas on a variety of political issues. By addressing the issue at its root, technology has the potential to solve for Political Polarization.

Polarization, a long standing component of politics around the world, may be here to stay. With a history rooted in discourse, this phenomenon has shaped much of the world we live in today. In recent years, polarization has taken a choke hold over the American people, culminating in some of the most divided presidential races we’ve ever seen. In order to solve such a pressing issue, a variety of strategies, both societal and governmental, need to be utilized. Although our world may never be entirely void of political polarization, it is paramount that we take action in solving this issue. This action must be in the form of real, implementable solutions — hypothetical arguments are no longer enough. We are operating in a time where these changes can prevent democratic backsliding, so it is vital to take a stand against this divisive component of our society.Waiting any longer to fix the issue of political polarization could result in the breaking down of the democracy we know and love.

When George Washington first warned us of the effects of political parties, he likely had no idea as to just how much our lives would be controlled by these seemingly artificial barriers. However, within a century of him leaving office, US political polarization on a number of issues boiled over into the Civil War. Politics was divisive enough to split our nation up and threatened to put an eternal end to America as we knew it. We are now in an eerily similar situation. As political polarization continues to split our nation into factions, we must be wary of the potentially ever-lasting impacts that may come of it. It is imperative that we mend the divisions that are systematically fracturing our nation, inching it closer to an irreparable state. Without unity, we will simply remain a nation of 50 separated states, weighed down by our own factions and teetering on the brink of protecting the very foundation it was built on. In order to fulfill our position as the United States of America, we need to effectively combat political polarization and prevent the backsliding of what was once the greatest democracy on earth. Doing so will revitalize our nation and allow us to lead a brighter future for democracy around the world.