More than 9,292 Arizona Republicans have requested to change their party affiliation from Republican to independent, Democrat or Libertarian since the Capitol riot, according to CNN citing numbers compiled by the Arizona Secretary of State’s office from January 6 through January 24.Â
Though these numbers represent a small percentage of the total number of Arizona voters, remember, Biden flipped the state for the first time since 1996, winning by 10,457 votes.
Also, if this trend continues over time, it could have an important impact on Arizona politics for years since the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission will use party registration data as a factor in how districts are balanced out.
Despite this, the Arizona Republican party is showing no signs of breaking with Donald Trump. The party voted to censure three prominent Republicans–Cindy McCain, Jeff Flake and current Republican Gov. Doug Ducey– and re-elected controversial Trump sycophant Kelli Ward as their party chair.
“The America First agenda is alive and well,” Ward said on Monday, according to CNN. “Are we going to continue to be an America first Arizona or are we going back to the dark days before Donald Trump? Luckily for us, we are blessed, we going forward as an America First state. I look forward to keeping Arizona great and Making America Great Again!.”
It’s statements like that that’s driving Arizona Republicans away from the party.
“Arizona Republicans took Donald Trump’s side,” C.J. Diegel, a Republican who has since changed his affiliation said. “It has to stop. Those people don’t represent what being conservative in Arizona means and I finally had to had to say, ‘No, I don’t want to be associated with the Arizona Republican Party.'”
The pattern is the same across the country in swing states.
In North Carolina over 6,000 Republicans have switched their party registration to unaffiliated. Following the 2016 election, the number of Republicans in the state who changed their affiliations was just under 450. Around 530 former Republicans changed their affiliation to Democratic.
Fewer registered Democrats in North Carolina, 1,730 changed or removed their party affiliation. 510 changed to the Republican Party, while approximately 1,210 removed their party affiliation.
The trend is also similar in populous areas of Florida like Miami-Dade and Broward counties. About 1,600 Republicans have changed or removed their party affiliations between Jan. 6-19 in Miami-Dade and 1,720 in Broward.
Just under 450 Democrats have switched so far in Miami-Dade. 280 of them removed their party affiliation.
In Broward, Democrats had around 660 switches in the same time frame, with over 430 moving to no party affiliation and 145 joining the Republican Party.
“It’s definitely a trend and we noticed it right after — on the 8th or 9th — right after the insurrection on the 6th,” Consuelo Kelly, the Broward County Supervisor of Elections communications director, told ABC News.
“The imbalance is something that I think is interesting to think about, given it’s proven right now, it seems mostly by Republicans reacting to the events of Jan. 6,” Dr. Michael Hanmer, a professor in voting and participation at the University of Maryland said. “But, going forward, I think there was already this trend in place that people were dissatisfied with both parties to a large extent. And so this might accelerate that.”
