Comparing U.S. Political Parties
Below are several tables that outline the basic differences between the various political parties in the United States. It should be noted that these tables were filled out strictly according to most recently published official platform of each party, and thus any box filled with "N/A" indicates that the platform does not mention the issue whatsoever, or that the party cannot have a stance on the issue due to their alignment with other policies (e.g. the Republican Party cannot be in favor of Instant Runoff Voting for the position of President due to their commitment to keeping the Electoral College).
These tables clearly show a distinct divide in ideology between three general groups: the Greens, the Libertarians, and the Democrats & Republicans. Greens value government aid in ensuring economic equality while disapproving of government intervention in social issues, Libertarians dislike government intervention in any form, and Republicans & Democrats dislike government intervention in the economy but value the government dictating social policy to the masses. It can be noted that the Democrats are more centrist than the Republicans, however, on social issues and a few select economic issues. These divisions can be visualized on this graph:
Click here and complete the quiz to see where your political views lie on this same graph.
These tables in no way are meant to represent the views of individuals, but rather they represent the ideas presented in the platforms of each party.
| Issue | Green | Democrat | Republican | Libertarian |
|
Support enacting proportional representation voting systems for legislative positions?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support enacting instant run-off voting for executive offices?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support providing full public financing of federal, state, and local elections?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support passing constitutional amendment to abolish corporate personhood?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support eliminating ballot access laws that discriminate against smaller parties and independents?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support abolishing the Electoral College in favor of direct national election of the President?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support including Presidential candidates from smaller parties in Presidential Debates?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support enacting a national "right to vote" law to guarantee universal, automatic, and permanent voter registration?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO |
N/A
|
|
Support enacting Statehood for the District of Columbia?
|
YES
|
Supports right to representation, but not to Statehood.
|
NO |
N/A
|
|
Support restoring citizenship rights to felons on completion of their sentence?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support making Election Day a national holiday?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support establishing an independent and non-partisan redistricting process to stop partisan gerrymandering.
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
YES
|
|
Support enacting tough new anti-trust laws for media conglomerates?
|
YES |
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Oppose censorship in the arts, media, press, and on the internet?
|
YES
|
Only mentions commitment to free speech on the internet.
|
N/A
|
YES
|
|
Support net neutrality?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support repealing the Patriot Act?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
| Issues of Foreign Policy | | | | |
|
Issue
|
Green
|
Democrat
|
Republican
|
Libertarian
|
|
Support U.S. involvement with United Nations (U.N.)?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support repealing the veto power given to five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council?
|
YES
|
NO
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support intervening in a nation-state engaged in genocidal acts?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support sovereignty of nation-states and their right to self-determination?
|
YES
|
NO
|
N/A
|
YES
|
|
Support the U.S. joining the International Criminal Court?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support abolishing nuclear weapons?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support right to self-determination for Puerto Rico?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO, only the right of Puerto Rico to become a State.
|
YES
|
| Social Issues | | | | |
|
Issue
|
Green
|
Democrat
|
Republican
|
Libertarian
|
|
Support regulations on purchasing firearms?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support the labeling of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support ending extreme torture?
|
YES
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support a universal, federally funded childcare program for pre-school and young schoolchildren?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support raising minimum wage to be a living wage?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support universal access to contraception?
|
YES |
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support a woman's right to a safe, affordable abortion?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support the Paycheck Fairness Act to balance the wages of men and women in the workplace?
|
YES
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
|
Condemn the use of racial profiling by law enforcement?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
YES
|
|
Supports right of persons, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, to marry?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support funding programs to increase public sensitivity to the needs of persons living with mental health issues?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support removing displays of religious symbols, monuments, and statements in government buildings?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support ending religiously-based curricula in government-funded public schools?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support a democratic conscientious objection process free of harassment, imprisonment, or deployment to war zones.
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support right to medical and psychiatric health care for soldiers after serving time in combat zones.
|
YES
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
Support enacting single-payer healthcare?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support legalizing recreational and medical marijuana?
|
YES |
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support public education?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Oppose implimenting the Common Core educational curriculum on a national scale?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
YES
|
|
Support increasing education regarding safe sex in public schools?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support increasing funding for AIDS research, education, and patient care?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Supports the right of the working people to unionize and collectively bargain?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
YES, but with no government interference
|
|
Support safer agricultural and industrial practices?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support treating substance abuse as a medical problem rather than a criminal problem?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support abolishing the death penalty?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
| Environmental Issues | | | | |
|
Issue
|
Green
|
Democrat
|
Republican
|
Libertarian
|
|
Aknowledge that climate change is occuring and is greatly affected by humanity?
|
YES
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support renewable energy subsidies?
|
YES |
YES, SOME
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support eliminating subsidies for fossil fuels, nuclear power, biomass, and waste incineration?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support signing international treaties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
|
YES
|
YES, SOME
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support creating a program to train workers for a clean energy economy?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support subsidized organic farming?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Oppose fracking as a means of acquiring fossil fuels?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Oppose oil and gas drilling on the continental shelf, in public lands, and under the Great Lakes?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Opppose mountain-top removal coal mining?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support the creation of bikeways?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support expanding eco-friendly mass transportation systems?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Support raising fuel efficiency standards on all motor vehicles sold in the United States?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Aknowledge that people have a right to clean water?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
YES
|
|
Support the Endangered Species Act?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Oppose monopolistic production of high-tech hybrid seeds?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
NO
|
|
Oppose the classification of humans, human DNA, or human organs, as a commodity to be owned?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Oppose inhumane treatment of animals in all settings?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
| Economic Issues | | | | |
|
Issue
|
Green
|
Democrat
|
Republican
|
Libertarian
|
|
Suport progressive taxation?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support increasing taxes on corporations?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support restoring the estate tax?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Oppose the privitization of Social Security?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support simplifying the tax code?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support raising taxes on tobacco and alcohol?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support adopting a reduced-hour (30-35 hours) work week as a standard?
|
YES
|
N/A
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support breaking up the nation's largest banks so that none are "too big to fail"?
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
|
Support adopting legislation to end discriminatory hiring policies adopted by businesses?
|
YES
|
YES
|
NO
|
NO
|
|
Support decreasing the bloated defense budget by 50%?
|
YES |
NO
|
NO
|
N/A
|
Sources
Platform of the Green Party of the United States (2014):
http://www.gp.org/images/platform/2014_Platform2010.pdf
Platform of the Libertarian Party (2014):
https://www.lp.org/files/2014_LP_Platform.pdf
Platform of the Democratic Party (No official platform could be located on official website, so this information was taken from a copy of the 2012 Democratic Platform found on the website of the University of California, Santa Barbara):
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=101962
Platform of the Republican Party (2012):
https://cdn.gop.com/docs/2012GOPPlatform.pdf
The Political Compass