People vote the way they do for many reasons. I vote the way I do for a religious reason. When I was a little boy, my father said, "It's a sin for a man who works for a living to vote for a Republican." I am now retired and I can see much better now, how wise my father is. He grew up in hard times, went to war, and raised a family during the post-war period of prosperity. He never wavered from his belief that Democrats favor the working people and Republicans favor big business. If you take out all of the scare tactics and single issue hot buttons, this difference becomes very plain. Look at legislation that helps people (Social Security, Medicare, G.I. Bill of Rights) and you find that most was passed under a Democratic administration. Now look at legislation that favors business (right-to-work laws, deregulation of business, deregulation of college tuition, tax cuts for high-income citizens) and find under which party these were passed. There have been abuses of power, but that is the nature of mankind. What usually happens, in my observation, is that when things go good for working people, they tend to become more conservative and Republicans get elected. When things turn sour for working people, they vote Democratic.