Gallup: Democrat Identification Hits Record Low

Although Democrats maintain an edge over Republicans in party identification and leaning, a new Gallup poll released Monday shows that the number of Americans identifying as a Democrat reached a record low in 2015.

According to the poll:

• 42 percent identified as independents;
• 29 percent identified as Democrats;
• 26 percent identified as Republicans;

Politico notes that prior to the results from 2015, the record low for the Democratic Party was in 2014 with 30 percent. And, according to data from 1951 to 1987, there was never a year in which fewer than 37 percent identified themselves as Democrats.

Dating back to 1988, Gallup notes that the share of self-identified Republicans is just one point above the historical record low of 25 percent in 2013.

The Gallup poll adds that because "2016 is a presidential election year, and the percentage of independents usually declines in years when Americans are choosing a president, both parties have an opportunity to win back some of their lost support."

However, the outcome of party identification will rely solely on how appealing the parties' and their presidential candidates' messages prove to be.

Results for the survey were compiled from 12,137 landline and cellphone interviews conducted throughout the course of 2015, carrying a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percentage point.

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