ABSTRACT
The New Deal realignment of the 1930s established strong class cleavages in the U.S. The Democratic Party began to support more liberal economic policies, which had more support among working-class voters. Republicans favored more conservative policies. The very strong class differences that existed in the 1930s and 1940s diminished somewhat in the second half of the 20th century, but class differences in voting continued to be significant from the 1950s through the 1990s, including among white voters. In the 1990s, white working-class voters were almost 10 points more Democratic in their presidential voter compared to middle-class whites. However, in the 21st century, that changed. The Democratic advantage among white working-class voters declined considerably in the first decade of the 21st century, and then in the second decade, it reversed, so that Republicans drew more support from working-class whites than they did from middle-class whites. The reasons for that change are the subject of this study.
