How Republicans can win over urban voters

Voters who live in cities lean Democratic. And it’s not for purely policy reasons. Many people who grew up in cities have parents and grandparents that voted Democratic. But our democracy is meant to be an open game, where the best ideas and the most effective organizing are supposed to win out. And that means that Republicans have an opportunity to win them over, too.

But this is no easy task. It’s undoubtedly true that rural voters lean conservative and urban ones lean liberal. This program has explored how Democrats can court rural voters, and now we’re exploring the possibility of a reversal of that phenomenon.

“There is a sense that something is broken in the American life today. That the elected leaders, or the elites, are not really being responsive to the concerns of everyday Americans,” — Michael Hendrix, senior fellow and director of state and local policy at the Manhattan Institute.

Listen: The possibility of Republicans courting urban voters, according to conservative analyst

Guest

Michael Hendrix is a senior fellow and director of state and local policy at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank in New York. He says because Americans feel disheartened with the country’s politics, an opportunity is available for Republicans to grab more voters who live in cities.

“There is a sense that something is broken in the American life today, that the elected leaders, or the elites, are not really being responsive to the concerns of everyday Americans,” says Hendrix.