The phenomenon of couples filing for divorce as a result of political differences has become more common in recent years, reflecting a deepening polarization in society.
It is not unusual for political disagreements to come up in a marriage, but the current climate has heightened tensions to a breaking point.
“I think it was exacerbated after our last presidential election,” said Cheryl New, a family attorney with New & Lowinger, a law firm in Bethesda, Maryland.
“People have some differences, but they really have been highlighted by what’s going on in politics,” said New. “They find themselves dealing in their marriage with deep discussions where they are so fundamentally different that they start to get angry.”
New has been in her career for nearly 40 years and has seen couples get divorced for all kinds of reasons.
Over the past five to seven years, however, she has seen more people than ever before cite politics as the main reason for wanting to split.
For many people, political beliefs are no longer seen only as opinions. They are often viewed instead as core values that shape someone’s views on morality and social justice, making it challenging for couples to reconcile different views.
It’s a trend that was first reported by Axios.
“When I first started, I very rarely had people coming in to see me to get divorced over political differences,” New said. “It’s affecting something as sacred as marriage, so it’s happening and it’s a problem.”
However, according to the U.S. Census, both marriage and divorce rates have gone down between 2011 and 2021. In 2011, the marriage rate was 16.3 marriages per 1,000 women; and in 2021, it was 14.9.
In 2021, the divorce rate dropped to 6.9, down from 9.7 divorces per 1,000 women in 2011.
New put some of the blame on smartphones and social media, as the technology allows people to be constantly immersed in news, political expression and passionate debate.
“It has become front and center in people’s lives, whether they’re young, whether they’re dating or whether they’re married,” said New.
She cited one specific example of a liberal woman she represented who’s married to a Republican man. The man had repeatedly downplayed the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the U.S. Capitol, which was one of the reasons she brought up wanting to end their relationship.
“She could not fundamentally wrap her head around that,” said New.
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