Some of the most sizable, yet understudied, differences in voting patterns in the American electorate occur between married and unmarried women, and between married women and married men. For example, in the Campaign of 2000, Democratic nominee Al Gore won only 48 percent of married women but earned the votes of 63 percent of unmarried women.
In the Campaign of 2008, 47 percent of married women voted for Barack Obama, compared to 42 percent of married men. Among unmarried voters, Obama’s support was substantially higher: 66 percent of unmarried women voted for Obama, and 63 percent of unmarried men did as well. The pattern was similar in the Campaign of 2012: 66 percent of married women voted for Obama, in contrast to 46 percent of married men. Moreover, 56 percent of single women voted for Obama, whereas only 38 percent of married men did.
Numerous theories have been offered by political scientists to explain these differences. It may be that people who marry are influenced by the political views of their partners, and men, who tend to be more conservative to begin with, are more likely to influence their wives’ views than women are to influence their husbands. However, this theory is challenged by the findings of Democratic pollster Celinda Lake, who noted that her studies of the marriage gap found that while 73 percent of married men claimed that their spouses voted for the same candidate that they did, only 49 percent of married women claimed to have voted for the same candidate as their spouses. Or it could be that marriage simply creates more conservative attitudes among voters. Or causality may be reversed: Those who are more conservative to begin with are more likely to get married, and to marry earlier, than those who are more liberal.
See also Gender Gap
CNN Politics, America’s Choice 2012 Election Center. “President: Full Results.” http://www.cnn.com/election/2012/results/race/president/. Accessed October 14, 2015.
The Economist. “The Marriage Gap: Think Again, Men.” December 15, 2013. http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2013/12/marriage-gap. Accessed October 14, 2015.
Gallup Organization. “Election Polls: Vote by Groups, 2008.” http://www.gallup.com/poll/112132/election-polls-vote-groups-2008.aspx. Accessed October 14, 2015.