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Voteview US Political Polarisation Data
Data Science and Analytics
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About
This dataset tracks political polarisation within the US Congress from 1879 to 2023, covering the 46th to the 117th Congress. It spans 52,540 days, providing a historical time-series view of ideological shifts. The figures are official from Voteview, compiled and structured by the creator. Ideological positions are calculated using the DW-NOMINATE (Dynamic Weighted NOMINAl Three-step Estimation) procedure, which maps legislators on a spatial grid, indicating similarities in their voting records. The first dimension of this analysis highlights differences between "liberal" and "conservative" ideologies, while the second dimension identifies divides within major political parties regarding issues such as slavery, currency, nativism, civil rights, and lifestyle issues throughout American history. The dataset aims to provide a quantitative and objective viewpoint of political polarisation, a phenomenon considered a significant threat to democracy, affecting legislative effectiveness and fostering division.
Columns
The dataset comprises 22 columns, offering detailed insights into congressional ideological positions:
- Chamber: Indicates whether the data pertains to the House or Senate. Has 2 unique values.
- Congress: The historical order number of the Congress being tracked. Ranges from 46 to 117.
- Year: The year the chamber of Congress was sworn in. Ranges from 1879 to 2021.
- Party.mean.diff.d1: Represents the difference in party means along the first dimension of ideology (liberal vs. conservative). Mean value is 0.67.
- Prop.moderate.d1: The proportion of moderates within the entire chamber based on the first dimension. Mean value is 0.28.
- Prop.moderate.dem.d1: The proportion of moderate Democrats (-0.25 to +0.25) along the first dimension. Mean value is 0.31.
- Prop.moderate.rep.d1: The proportion of moderate Republicans (-0.25 to +0.25) along the first dimension. Mean value is 0.24.
- Overlap: Measures the overlap in ideological positions. Mean value is 0.11.
- Chamber.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of the entire chamber along the first dimension. Mean value is 0.01.
- Chamber.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of the entire chamber along the second dimension. Mean value is 0.01.
- Dem.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of the Democratic Party along the first dimension. Mean value is -0.32.
- Dem.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of the Democratic Party along the second dimension. Mean value is 0.1.
- Rep.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of the Republican Party along the first dimension. Mean value is 0.36.
- Rep.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of the Republican Party along the second dimension. Mean value is -0.13.
- North.rep.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of Northern Republicans along the first dimension. Mean value is 0.35.
- North.rep.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of Northern Republicans along the second dimension. Mean value is -0.16.
- South.rep.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of Southern Republicans along the first dimension. Note: This column contains 13% missing values (NA).
- South.rep.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of Southern Republicans along the second dimension. Note: This column also contains 13% missing values (NA).
- North.dem.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of Northern Democrats along the first dimension. Mean value is -0.33.
- North.dem.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of Northern Democrats along the second dimension. Mean value is -0.04.
- South.dem.mean.d1: The mean ideological position of Southern Democrats along the first dimension. Mean value is -0.27.
- South.dem.mean.d2: The mean ideological position of Southern Democrats along the second dimension. Mean value is 0.35.
Distribution
The dataset is provided as a CSV file, named
Political Polarization in US Congress (Assorted).csv, with a size of 33.27 kB. It contains 22 columns. The exact number of rows or records is not specified, but it covers a period of 52,540 days. The data is updated annually.Usage
This dataset is ideally suited for:
- Analysing historical trends in US political polarisation.
- Statistical modelling to identify underlying causes and effects of polarisation.
- Academic research in political science, sociology, and history.
- Developing visualisations to illustrate ideological shifts and party dynamics over time.
- Informing policy discussions regarding democratic stability and legislative effectiveness.
Coverage
The dataset's coverage includes:
- Geographic Scope: United States Congress.
- Time Range: From March 4th, 1879, to January 7th, 2023, encompassing the 46th to the 117th Congresses.
- Demographic Scope: Focuses on the ideological positions of members of the US House and Senate, including breakdowns by party and geographical region (North/South) for Republicans and Democrats.
- Notes on Data Availability: Specific data for Southern Republican means (south.rep.mean.d1 and south.rep.mean.d2) has 13% missing values.
License
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Who Can Use It
This dataset is beneficial for:
- Political scientists and researchers: To conduct in-depth studies on legislative behaviour and ideological alignment.
- Data analysts and modellers: For creating predictive models or identifying patterns in political data.
- Historians: To understand long-term shifts in American political landscape.
- Journalists and commentators: To support articles and reports on current political divisions with historical context.
- Students: As a resource for academic projects and learning about quantitative political analysis.
Dataset Name Suggestions
- US Congressional Ideology Trends
- Voteview US Political Polarisation Data
- Historical Congressional DW-NOMINATE Scores
- American Legislative Polarisation Archive
- Congress Ideological Divide (1879-2023)
Attributes
Original Data Source: Voteview US Political Polarisation Data
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