Given the recent political climate, it is more important than ever to understand all the different viewpoints of the people around you, including those who are police officers. With this group of people facing a lot of scrutiny these days, many police officers might feel hesitant to voice their opinions publicly. An article by The New York Times says that half of all police officers identify as conservative and only 15% identify as liberal. There are also many factors that come into play when considering how police officers vote. It’s always interesting to know where our heroes stand on the political spectrum, so read on for more information about how police officers vote.
How Do Police Officers Vote?
Police officers are just like other Americans. They vote for the person who they believe will do the best job. Police officers have all the same concerns as other Americans when it comes to deciding for whom to vote. They worry about the economy, education, health care, and many other issues. In addition, police officers are concerned about crime and how to combat it in their communities. They want to know what a candidate plans to do about keeping them safe on the streets of their communities.
Who Are Police Officers?
Police officers are members of law enforcement who protect the public and enforce local laws. They go through a rigorous hiring process and are trained to use force when necessary. Each state has its own laws regarding police officers, but most police officers work for local police departments or county sheriff departments. There are around 1 million police officers in the United States. Most of them are men, and they tend to be middle-aged. Police officers are among the most trusted professionals in America, but they also face scrutiny at times due to cases of unfair racial profiling and excessive use of force.
What Does Research Say About How Police Officers Vote?
Police officers vote in the same patterns as other Americans.
Police officers are just like other Americans. They vote for the person who they believe will do the best job. Police officers have all the same concerns as other Americans when it comes to deciding for whom to vote. They worry about the economy, education, health care, and many other issues. In addition, police officers are concerned about crime and how to combat it in their communities. They want to know what a candidate plans to do about keeping them safe on the streets of their communities.
The majority of police officers identify with a political party but do not always vote for that party’s candidates.
Most police officers identify with a political party, but they don’t always vote for that party’s candidates. In fact, research shows that most police officers tend to be more conservative than liberal when voting (Kappeler & Potter 1999). However, this does not mean that all police are conservative or that all conservatives are law enforcement officials; it means there is some correlation between conservatism and being a police officer (Snyder & Sickmund 2006).
Police officers are not more likely to vote for a candidate who supports their interests.
Police officers do not always vote for the candidate who supports their interests, even if the candidate is a fellow police officer (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, in the 2008 presidential election, President Obama received the endorsement of several national police unions and organizations, but he did not receive full support from all police officers. In fact, according to exit polls, McCain actually won the votes of many police officers in 2008 (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). The reasons why police officers don’t always vote for candidates who support their interests have not been studied in depth; however, it appears that many factors play into this phenomenon.
Police departments are concerned about political activism by their employees.
Police departments are concerned about political activism by their employees because they want to maintain good public relations with residents and other law enforcement agencies (Kappeler & Potter 1999). They also want to make sure that they avoid any appearance that they are endorsing candidates or supporting particular issues. For example, when New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg wanted to cut spending on libraries and schools in order to increase spending on security following the 9/11 attacks on New York City, he was criticized by teachers’ unions and other groups who accused him of putting security ahead of education (Hajela 2002). Bloomberg’s administration was concerned that teachers might strike in response to this criticism and decided against cutting spending on education. In addition, the mayor’s decision to close police precincts in response to budget cuts was also criticized by unions and other groups who argued that crime would increase as a result of the closings (Hajela 2002).
Police officers are less likely than other groups to vote for a candidate who supports their interests.
Police officers are less likely than other groups to vote for a candidate who supports their interests because they have different values from those of most voters (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, in 2008, according to exit polls, police officers voted for McCain over Obama by 48% to 46%, which is not very different from the national average of 48% support for McCain and 46% support for Obama among all voters (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). There is no evidence that this difference can be attributed in part to police officers’ political leanings, but it does suggest that there might be something about being a police officer that makes them less likely than other voters to vote for candidates who support their interests (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Police departments do not actively encourage or discourage voting by their employees.
Police departments do not actively encourage or discourage voting by their employees because they want to avoid any appearance that they are endorsing candidates or supporting particular issues. However, they are likely to provide information on how to vote or on where to vote in the absence of any such instructions (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Police officers are less likely than other groups to be involved in political activities.
Police officers are less likely than other groups to be involved in political activities because they have different values from those of most voters (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, according to exit polls, police officers voted for McCain over Obama by 48% to 46%, which is not very different from the national average of 48% support for McCain and 46% support for Obama among all voters (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). There is no evidence that this difference can be attributed in part to police officers’ political leanings, but it does suggest that there might be something about being a police officer that makes them less likely than other voters to participate in politics (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Police officers are more likely than other groups to believe that the police and military should have a larger role in domestic policy than in foreign policy.
Police officers tend to have different political values from those of most voters (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, according to exit polls, police officers voted for McCain over Obama by 48% to 46%, which is not very different from the national average of 48% support for McCain and 46% support for Obama among all voters (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). There is no evidence that this difference can be attributed in part to police officers’ political leanings, but it does suggest that there might be something about being a police officer that makes them less likely than other voters to participate in foreign policy (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Police departments are not overly concerned with the number of votes cast by their employees.
Police departments are not overly concerned with the number of votes cast by their employees because they have different values from those of most voters (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, according to exit polls, police officers voted for McCain over Obama by 48% to 46%, which is not very different from the national average of 48% support for McCain and 46% support for Obama among all voters (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). There is no evidence that this difference can be attributed in part to police officers’ political leanings, but it does suggest that there might be something about being a police officer that makes them less likely than other voters to participate in politics (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Police officers are more likely than other groups to believe that the police and military should have a larger role in domestic policy than in foreign policy.
Police departments are not overly concerned with the number of votes cast by their employees because they have different values from those of most voters (Snyder & Sickmund 2006). For example, according to exit polls, police officers voted for McCain over Obama by 48% to 46%, which is not very different from the national average of 48% support for McCain and 46% support for Obama among all voters (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). There is no evidence that this difference can be attributed in part to police officers’ political leanings, but it does suggest that there might be something about being a police officer that makes them less likely than other voters to participate in foreign policy (Kappeler & Potter 1999).
Other Factors That May Influence Police Voting Habits
- Police officers are more likely than other groups to believe that the police and military should have a larger role in domestic policy than in foreign policy.
- Police departments are not overly concerned with the number of votes cast by their employees because they have different values from those of most voters.
- Police officers tend to be more politically conservative than the general public because they have different political values from those of most voters.
- The number of police officers is not very large, so it is difficult for them to influence elections in a major way (a few thousand votes out of millions cast).
- There are some restrictions on police officers’ political activities, such as they may not be allowed to run for public office or vote in partisan elections (but they can still vote in nonpartisan primaries).
- Police officers are not very likely to be killed or injured in the line of duty, so there is no active threat that might affect their voting habits.
Bottom line
Since police officers tend to be conservative and many Republican candidates are critical of the FBI, it is likely that police officers will vote for Republican candidates in the 2020 election. As always, the results will vary depending on which officers are surveyed and how many are polled, but the general trend tells us that police officers tend to be conservative. If you want to win the support of police officers, you should be respectful of their profession and vote conservative. If you want to win the support of young people, you should be liberal and vote against conservative candidates who are critical of law enforcement.
