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Table 9

How Libertarians Voted for President, by Age, 2004 (percent)

Age

Kerry

Bush

Other

% of Total

18­29

71

24

5

17

30­49

21

72

7

35

50­64

26

74

0

25

65+

41

48

10

23

Source: Authors' calculations from ANES 2004 Time Series.

young."44 Social and political experiences in

sider themselves well informed. However, this

leads libertarians to have colder feelings

one's youth have a powerful formative impact.

toward Congress, the federal government, and

According to the Pew data (Table 10), liber-

political parties in general. Libertarians are

tarians are more likely to be male and affluent

more likely to be secular and infrequently

and to live in the West. They are also less reli-

attend church. They have cooler feelings

gious than conservatives and populists (though

toward the Christian Coalition and warmer

slightly more religious than liberals). That

feelings toward gay men and lesbians than do

might correlate with their high vote for Perot; it

other voters. Libertarians are substantially

was reported in 1992 that the Bush campaign's

more likely to own stocks than are other vot-

polls showed that Perot voters were very similar

to Bush's, "except they don't go to church."45

ers, making them a key part of the "investor

class."47

The Pew data show libertarians to be better edu-

cated than average, though not as well educated

Libertarians are more likely to say that

as liberals. That finding is not consonant with

neither political party represents their views.

other studies. Maddox and Lilie, for instance,

Understandably, then, half of libertarians

found libertarians in 1980 to be just as likely as

claim to be independent, neither Republican

liberals to have a college or graduate degree.46

nor Democratic, and in 2004 equal numbers

of those chose a Democratic or Republican

Our own analysis of the ANES data looked

affiliation when pressed.

only at libertarians, not at other groups (Tables

Interestingly, libertarians seem more likely

11­13). Generally speaking, libertarians cooled

than the average person to switch their party

to Bush from 2000 to 2004. They had colder

leanings. From 2000 to 2004, we find a 10 per-

feelings toward Kerry than toward Gore,

centage point increase in independent liber-

despite voting in larger numbers for Kerry--

tarians who lean Democratic and a 6 percent-

more evidence that libertarians tended to vote

Libertarians are

age point decrease in libertarians who identify

against Bush, not for Kerry. For the 2008 presi-

more likely to

as Republican. This calls into question the the-

dential front runners, libertarians have very

sis that the number of "true" independents is

cold feelings toward Sen. Hillary Clinton, but

say that neither

shrinking and that most independents really

they're warming. Libertarians feel no more

political party

vote like "closet Republicans and Democrats."

warmly toward John McCain than the general

represents their

Among libertarians, party affiliation seems to

public, perhaps understandable since his

be only weakly held.

"straight-talking" independence and leadership

views. Half of

Given their affluence and high levels of

on the treatment of detainees may be out-

libertarians

education, libertarians are likely to vote in

weighed for many libertarians by his vigorous

high numbers, despite being less organized

support for cracking down on political speech.

claim to be

and less focused on politics. And as noted

Libertarians tend to follow public affairs

independent.

above, that is what we see. In the ANES data

more closely than the general public and con-

15