Pictured Above: Pinellas County party change data from the week following the Jan. 6 capitol riot showed a total of 1,016 party affiliation changes.
Courtesy of Julie Marcus
By Mark Parker
The protest and subsequent riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 has made an immediate impact on voters in Pinellas County, leading to a significant shift in registered party affiliations.
These affiliation changes may carry over USF St. Petersburg, said senior mass communications major Aliah Farley.
College students, she said, are a younger demographic and are still shaping their political beliefs. The shift to no party affiliation makes sense to her as she thinks that people should evaluate candidates based on their platforms and history, instead of strictly because of what party they represent.
“If going independent allows people to open their minds to looking across the aisle and consider a politician’s goals and platform, rather than just voting blindly by party, then I think that is a good thing,” Farley said.
In just the seven days following that event, 801 Republicans switched parties – almost eight times the number of Democrats, according to data provided by the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections office. Almost 74 percent of the 1,016 people who switched parties made the choice to switch to no party affiliation or independent.
Local Democrats lost 106 voters but gained 172 – 120 of which were former Republicans. Those lost mostly went the no-party and independent route, as they claimed 71 percent of the party’s defections.
The largest third party in Pinellas, the Libertarian party, gained 25 members, 20 of which were previously Republican.
This exodus of Republicans in only the first seven days following Jan. 6 could be a sign of things to come for a usually purple county like Pinellas.
Lexi Bishop, a junior political science major and Republican, was not surprised that Republicans switched parties after this past election cycle, especially to no party affiliation. She believes that is because many did not see Trump as a true Republican, as he does not embody traditional GOP values.
“I believe if Trump had spent his time on the campaign trail saying everything he said in his farewell address and not attacking his opponents as much, the election results could have easily gone in his favor, as well as not driven people from the party,” Bishop said.
According to votepinellas.com, after the party switches following that week Democrats now have a 4,052 advantage over Republicans. Donald Trump received the most votes in Pinellas County in 2016, while Joe Biden narrowly won the county by 1,241 votes in November.
The no party affiliated or independent group gained 770 members.
The move to being independent of party affiliation is a trend that picked up steam over the last four years of the Trump administration, with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol being a catalyst to the mass departures.
In 2017, there were only 97 defections – and the Republicans and Democrats received an equal share.
State Representative Ben Diamond (D-St. Petersburg) agrees that the Jan. 6 attack had an impact on party affiliation.
“The data seems to show that the events that transpired at our nation’s Capitol last week have had an impact on citizens’ views.” Diamond said. “I am hopeful that voters will remember this horrific tragedy when they are electing new leaders and will select individuals who are truly dedicated to upholding the values and principles that our country stands for.”
“The shift to no party affiliation makes sense to her as she thinks that people should evaluate candidates based on their platforms and history, instead of strictly because of what party they represent.”
This makes no sense in today’s highly polarized politics. Party affiliation says everything about the candidate’s “platforms” if we’re going to be realistic.