New Political Alignment or National Elections

Changes in the U.S. House don't represent a new political alignment, but a confirmation of existing political alignments.The huge gains this election by Republicans in the U.S. House don't represent a new political alignment, but rather reflect a move toward national elections for Congress based on shifting political coalitions. That's the view of Nate Silver, writing in his blog "FiveThirtyEight."

"The 1980 election," Silver said, "arguably marked the beginning of a long-term shift toward Republicans in America's suburbs, with Jimmy Carter's share of the suburban vote dropping from 53 percent in 1976 to 37 percent in 1980."

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