dealignment
Voters leaving parties
Dealignment describes voters abandoning long-standing loyalty to a political party without necessarily shifting to another.
Unlike realignment, where voters move from one party to another, dealignment produces more independents, ticket-splitters, and volatile election results: The dealignment of working-class voters has reshaped both parties.
The term appears mainly in political science discussions of electoral behavior.
Absence of feeling
- abstentionFormal refusal to vote
- nonvotingWithout electoral say
- indifferenceLack of interest
- cynicismDistrust of human sincerity
disenchantment · alienation · antiestablishment · unpredictability · ambivalence · fluidity · turnout · swing voter
Refusal to join blocs
- impartialityFreedom from prejudice
- independenceFreedom from external control
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
- objectivityFreedom from personal bias
nonpartisanship · evenhandedness · unaffiliated · centrist · moderate · uncommitted · balance · fairness
Changing arrangement of parts
- restructuringRearranging an existing framework
- transformationThorough change in form
- shiftMovement or work period
- transitionChange from one state
reorientation · decentralization · fragmentation · reform · reshaping · evolution · flux · change
Loss of loyalty
- disengagementWithdrawal from involvement
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
- nonpartisanshipAbsence of party affiliation
- disillusionmentBitter loss of faith
alienation · polarization · fragmentation · volatility · swing · party loyalty · defection · crossover
apathy
Absence of feeling
- abstentionFormal refusal to vote
- nonvotingWithout electoral say
- indifferenceLack of interest
cynicism · disenchantment · alienation · antiestablishment · unpredictability · ambivalence · fluidity · turnout · swing voter · undecided
nonalignment
Refusal to join blocs
- impartialityFreedom from prejudice
- independenceFreedom from external control
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
objectivity · nonpartisanship · evenhandedness · unaffiliated · centrist · moderate · uncommitted · balance · fairness · dispassion
reconfiguration
Changing arrangement of parts
- restructuringRearranging an existing framework
- transformationThorough change in form
- shiftMovement or work period
transition · reorientation · decentralization · fragmentation · reform · reshaping · evolution · flux · change · breakdown
disaffection
Loss of loyalty
- disengagementWithdrawal from involvement
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
- nonpartisanshipAbsence of party affiliation
disillusionment · alienation · polarization · fragmentation · volatility · swing · party loyalty · defection · crossover · independent
dealignmentrealignment
Adjusting relative positions
alignment · partisanship · party loyalty · political engagement · political polarization
dealignmentalignment
Correct relative positioning
realignment · coordination · synchronization · integration · calibration
align, alignment, aligned, aligning, aligns, misalign, misaligned, misalignment, realign