ABSTRACT
By historical standards the Mountain West realignment is quite extraordinary. In comparison with the 1930s realignment, it has proceeded backwards, with changes in congressional voting preceding changes in presidential voting. Certainly loose party coalitions continue to exist, but in the Mountain West realignment the concept has very little explanatory power. If the Mountain West realignment is the precursor of a national realignment, it is clear that the philosophical foundations of such a realignment will break the progression of history. In contrast, the core ideology in the Mountain West realignment has been decentralization in governance, increasing reliance on the marketplace, transferring responsibilities to the states and localities, and in general reducing the power and scope of the national government. A modern Republican realignment may have more in common with the 1896 capture of the Democratic party by periphery interests than with any political realignment.
