Families split when it comes to politics this year

On TV and the Internet, I'm finding more and more stories on this topic. There seems to be no middle ground. This post shows two examples of this year's presidential race effect on normally close-knit family ties that have created a social strain on the family unit.

Story #1

Some couples are united in love but fiercely divided at the voting booth

When Jonathan Doyle, 40, talks politics, you can hear the passion rising in his voice. A question, say one about Sarah Palin, sets off a 20-minute monologue starting with an incredulous “I don’t even know what to say about that,” and concluding with exclamation points: “a vice-presidential candidate winking at everyone! I mean, when did we start to accept that!?”

But ask Amy Ryberg Doyle, 38, Jonathan’s wife, about Palin and she says “I like her!”

Jonathan simply cannot fathom how his wife, the woman he loves, the woman whose qualities he shamelessly praises, the mother of his three children, can consider voting for the McCain-Palin ticket when the superiority of the Obama-Biden ticket is so obvious to him.

She, on the other hand, thinks her husband is flat wrong. “And he keeps trying to convince me,” she says. “He thinks I am undecided. He is nuts. I have told him I am supporting McCain. He’s delusional.”

Voter registration across the country is at an all-time high and the whole nation seems riveted by this election. A crumbling financial system, two wars, an uncertain energy future and half a dozen other big issues have combined to make this the most momentous election in at least a generation. It has also left emotions ragged and voters arguing, particularly couples like the Doyles, of Greenville, S.C., who find themselves rooting for opposite candidates. All around the country, some husbands and wives are facing the challenge of loving their partner even when they don't love their partner's political leanings.

“I was huge Ronald Reagan fan,” explains Ellen Gold, 51, over a cell phone while her husband, Bill, 58, stands nearby while the California couple tours Rockefeller Center in New York. “I really loved Reagan. Bill thinks that is a disgusting thing.”

Judy Ranieri also finds herself in a house divided.

— Full Story

Story #2

In mama-daughter disputes, politics is personal

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Karen and Kristen Ingraham, who’ve always been more BFF than mother and daughter, were united in their rabid support of Sen. Hillary Clinton.

But when it became clear that Senator Barack Obama had clinched the Democratic nomination, mom headed right — but daughter stayed left.

"Since Kristen was born, it's always been ‘Just you and me, kid.’ She finishes my sentences,” says single mom Karen Ingraham, who’s 55 and lives in Baltimore. “We've never had an argument about anything important — maybe about a $100 dollar pair of blue jeans. It's just shocking."

During one of the most heated presidential elections in this country’s history, party lines are being drawn among loved ones of every kind — couples, friends and family members — including that close-but-often-contentious relationship: mothers and daughters.

Generational divides are evident in certain election polls. Young voters favor Barack Obama over John McCain 59 percent to 38 percent, according to the latest Gallup data. Voters 65 and older are more evenly divided, with 45 percent for Obama and 43 percent for McCain. Among women overall, there's a big gap between the 54 percent who support Obama and the 39 percent who choose McCain.

Within those numbers are likely countless mother-daughter duos polarized by political preference — and surprised at the impact on their connection.

“Women tend to be more intense about relationships, they tend to prioritize relationships more,” says Nadine Kaslow, an Emory University psychologist. “Even if you think of female relationships in elementary school or the professional world, the women are often more intense about it than the guys are.”

— Full Story