Partisanship
By Eric Ostermeier on July 31, 2009
The latest monthly SurveyUSA poll finds more Gopher State residents identifying as Republicans than at any point in more than four years. The new poll, conducted July 17-19 of 600 adults statewide, also finds Republicans now match the Democrats in party ID for the first time since October 2005....
By Eric Ostermeier on July 9, 2009
Last month a Smart Politics analysis of the most conservative members of the U.S. House (as determined by National Journal's annual rankings) found Representative Michele Bachmann to have received the smallest margin of victory of the 44 most conservative Republicans who won reelection in 2008. That blog explained how none...
By Eric Ostermeier on July 8, 2009
Congressional Quarterly's vote study for the first half of 2009 is in the books, and finds that House Democrats overall supported Barack Obama 91.1 percent of the time in which the President stated his clear policy preference on legislation that received a floor vote. But what about the Blue Dog...
By Eric Ostermeier on June 8, 2009
As Tim Pawlenty completes the remaining 18+ months of his second term, before venturing into (politically or financially) greener pastures, he has vowed to "Continue to spend every day doing what's right for them. Minnesota will get my very best until I'm done. There is much important and difficult work...
By Eric Ostermeier on April 5, 2009
Smart Politics recently examined Governor Tim Pawlenty's approval rating and highlighted its remarkable strength and stability in the face of the current economic crisis. But Pawlenty's popularity is also noteworthy when viewed in the greater partisan environment of the Gopher State. A Smart Politics analysis of state and federal officeholders...
By Eric Ostermeier on April 3, 2009
In a colorful speech delivered at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs on Wednesday afternoon, Minnesota House Minority Leader Marty Seifert (HD 21A-Marshall) discussed some of the differences between a 'Marty Seifert Republican' and a 'Washington, D.C. Republican' as well as drew some policy distinctions between himself and Governor Tim...
By Eric Ostermeier on February 22, 2009
Although President George W. Bush lost Minnesota in the 2004 presidential election and Republicans lost 14 seats in the Minnesota House from the 2002 election cycle, the GOP still held a slim advantage in Party ID in Minnesota that year, as well as across the Upper Midwest. That advantage has...
By Eric Ostermeier on September 1, 2008
2:15 p.m. "Conservatism Today" is the fourth panel convened today at the Humphrey Institute's series of forums entitled America's Future: Conversations about Politics and Policy during the 2008 Republican National Convention. Moderating this afternoon's panel is E.J. Dionne (Columnist, Washington Post and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution). The panelists are: *...
By Eric Ostermeier on July 28, 2008
A Smart Politics study of the partisan leanings of Minnesota residents finds that the percentage of self-identified Democrats has increased nearly 30 percent since 2005. While the percentage of self-identified Republicans has dropped, it seems the Democratic Party is increasing its numbers largely from converting independents to its side. Smart...
By Eric Ostermeier on January 22, 2008
12:00 p.m. Today's forum at the Humphrey Institute, sponsored by the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance, focuses on the state of the Minnesota Republican Party and conservatism. The event is moderated by Dr. Larry Jacobs, Director of the Center, and includes the following panelists: Steve Sviggum, Commissioner,...
By Eric Ostermeier on November 30, 2007
7:30 a.m. Vin Weber, former 6-term Minnesota Republican U.S. Representative (1981-1993), will be speaking at the Humphrey Institute today on the state of the Republican Party and conservatism. Despite generally low approval of the job the Democrats have done since seizing control of the U.S. House and Senate with last...
By Eric Ostermeier on September 26, 2007
12:05pm. Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center is speaking this afternoon at the Humphrey Institute in the first of two events today. This speech is entitled, "What to Watch in the 2008 Elections." Kohut is one of the nation's leading authorities on public opinion research and he is the...
By Eric Ostermeier on April 24, 2007
According to a new poll released last week by SurveyUSA, the number of Minnesotans who identify themselves as Republicans has dropped to just 25 percent—the lowest level in twenty-five polls released by the organization dating back to May 2005. In October 2006—three weeks before Election Day, 39 percent of...
By Eric Ostermeier on October 26, 2006
With the 2006 elections being cited as most expensive in U.S. history, filled with some of the nastiest campaign ads ever, one might expect to find increased disgust among the electorate for the two major parties responsible for these campaigns, especially by those who only weakly identify themselves with...
