Understanding Partisan Defectors

The factors driving some former Democrats into the GOP are markedly different from Republicans charting the opposite path.

By Evan Gottesman

Kennedy and Kinzinger, Gabbard and Cheney, Democrats for Republicans, and Republicans for Democrats.

Partisan defectors remain a coveted prize on the campaign trail as we enter the final eight weeks of the 2024 presidential race.

Under America’s political duopoly, party affiliation is one of the sharpest markers of identity. And claiming allies across the aisle is a slick way to court the voters in the middle who could decide a close contest.

Yet not all cross-party endorsements are created equal.

The former Democrats who have endorsed Republican nominee Donald Trump cut a very different profile from the exiled Republicans who are lining up for Kamala Harris—and the differences between them say a lot about where the parties are today.

Students, pastors, and many more who were deemed a threat to the authoritarian regime of dictator Daniel Ortega were among many political prisoners recently released from Nicaragua. They’ll be headed to Guatemala as refugees, and soon after given the chance to relocate elsewhere.

2. Christmas is coming early for Venezuela’s dictator.

Venezuela is facing its worst political moment in decades after Nicholás Maduro falsely declared himself the winner of July’s presidential election. Facing widespread internal protests and calls from international organizations for accountability, Maduro chose to focus on moving Christmas in Venezuela to October.

3. A far-right party just won a state election in Germany—the first since 1945.

In Germany’s eastern region, the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) claimed victory in one state election with 32.8 percent of the vote and came in second place in another with 30.6 percent. The elections show that nationalist, anti-immigrant, and illiberal sentiments once relegated to the fringe are increasingly becoming more popular in German politics.

4. Free speech becomes a memory in Hong Kong.

A Hong Kong court convicted two journalists imprisoned on sedition charges for producing opinion pieces that criticized the nation’s national security law and interviewing pro-democracy lawyers. They now face up to two years in prison.

5. An American hostage was executed in Gaza. Here’s the American response.

In the tunnels underneath Gaza, members of Hamas executed six hostages taken from Israel during the October 7th attacks. Among those killed was Hersh Goldberg-Polin—an American-Israeli citizen. A few days later, the Justice Department announced terrorism charges against senior Hamas leaders.

6. The long arm of China wraps around San Francisco.

The Washington Post published an investigation into the rise of Chinese repression in an American city. Now, after six months of collecting thousands of photos and videos, dozens of testimonials, and doing the hard work of journalism, the long arm of the Chinese Communist Party is on full display, serving as a warning for open societies everywhere.

Germany’s Historic Responsibility for Ukraine

By Garry Kasparov — August 19, 2024

We are entering a season of aggressive attack ads, unpleasant political campaigning, and what I can only imagine will be a dumpster fire of a presidential debate.

We’re not just more polarized than ever before; the very definitions of “Left” and “Right” are different today than they were just 15 years ago. With each passing week, new factions arise that somehow appear to be more radical than the ones that came before.

In spite of all these headwinds, I believe that we can cultivate an ability to disagree productively.

With this in mind, I moderated a conversation this week with former Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY), New York Times columnist Bret Stephens, and Daniella Ballou-Aares, CEO and co-founder of Leadership Now on the future of America’s political spectrum and how we can learn to disagree with one another better.

RDI is proud to bring together leading voices from across the political spectrum representing left, right, and center, government, media, and the private sector.

You can expect more of these events to arrive right in your inbox, so stay tuned, and if you have any ideas, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

—Uriel Epshtein, RDI Chief Executive Officer