CNN Senior Data Analyst Harry Enten A change in the ideological makeup of the Democratic Party has led to a “record high” share of Americans who say the party is “too liberal,” reports said Thursday.
In a conversation with the anchor Kate BoldouinEnten breaks down the shift in the Democratic Party, noting that conservative Democrats are all but extinct while far-left Democrats are ascendant.
Enten began by detailing the numbers within the Democratic Party, “The results of the Democratic primary special election in New Jersey’s 11th District illustrate a larger point within the Democratic Party, which is that the far left is stronger than before. This exposes the game here. Democrats who consider themselves very liberal or conservative – you know, there have been a lot of conservative Democrats in the past, right?” He continued:
Back in 1999, 26% of Democrats identified themselves as conservative. Only 5% said they were very liberal. This is a little bit. Now, the far left has gained considerable power. Look at this: Now we’re talking about one in five Democrats, 21%, who say they are very liberal. Conservatives in the Democratic Party? Goodbye, friends. Maybe only 8%.
When you combine the 21 percent who are very liberal with those who describe themselves as somewhat liberal, we’re talking about three-fifths of Democrats who consider themselves somewhat liberal or very liberal, and very liberals make up a much larger share of the party. As you can see in New Jersey’s 11th District, the far left, once a small part of the Democratic Party, has gained considerable power.
Boldouin continued: “What about democratic socialists, like, you know, you have Bernie Sanders or Zoran Mamdani Here in New York City? So where do you line up? “
Enton responded: “Okay, so, on a separate question, CNN asked this last year, which is, ‘Well, of all Democrats, Democrats who consider themselves democratic socialists, including independents who lean Democratic. “Look at this: We’re talking about one-third — one-third of all Democrats who call themselves democratic socialists. Bernie Sanders and Zoran Madani are not alone.”
“They’re a sizable portion of the Democratic base at this point. What’s more, if you look at Democrats under 35, they make up almost half of the Democratic Party. Look at this: 42% of Democrats under 35 identify themselves as democratic socialists, like Zohran Mamdani. What’s happening in New York City is not an aberration, right? This is not something that just happened in New York City. This is something we’re seeing now when we’re talking about 42% of 35 When Democrats are under 10 and a third of Democrats are growing up within the Democratic Party – oh my God,” he concluded in his signature line.
“So if the ideology of the Democratic Party is shifting or changing, how do people feel about that,” Boldouin asked.
Enton responded: “Well, we’re talking about the Democratic base, right? But what about all Americans? Right? What about all voters? Voters who think the Democratic Party is too liberal now — look at this: 42% in ’96, 48% in 2013, now 58% in 2025 of voters think the Democratic Party is too liberal. The Democratic Party is moving to the left, the far left is gaining power, and there may be some electoral impact there because what we are seeing now is that voters – overwhelmingly – say they are too liberal.”
“That was really interesting,” Boldouin said. “Thank you very much, Harry.”
Enten later shared the video on social media, noting, “A record 58 percent of voters think Democrats are too liberal.”
Watch the clip above via CNN.
The share of Americans who think Democrats are “too liberal” has reached an “all-time high,” CNN’s Harry Enten reports. This article first appeared on Mediaite.
