Dems or GOP: Who has a more "diverse" electorate?

[Rockefeller GOP]

Before you read any further, I do NOT mean diversity as in ethnicity or national origin; that title would clearly go to the Democrats, as Republicans are overwhelmingly White.  What I'm asking is which party has a wider range of "factions," and which party's factions are more (comically) different from each other?  For example, in the GOP, the business community must coexist with evangelical social conservatives while in the Democratic Party, environmentalists must coexist with unions.  I thought this would be kind of a fun topic of "odder marriages."

[IceSpear]

I think both parties are pretty diverse in this sense, but there tends to be a lot more public infighting on the Republican side than on the Democratic side.

It's sort of like two dysfunctional families. The Democrats are the family that merely tolerate each other out of common self interest or obligation, but have little to no connection and rarely communicate with each other, and just try to push their agenda behind the scenes, even if it hurts another member in the coalition. On the other hand, the Republicans are like the family that you see screaming at and beating their child in public for having a temper tantrum (or in the case of real life, shutting down the government). This only further fans the flames of the rivalry.

[Potus]

I think both parties are pretty diverse in this sense, but there tends to be a lot more public infighting on the Republican side than on the Democratic side.

It's sort of like two dysfunctional families. The Democrats are the family that merely tolerate each other out of common self interest or obligation, but have little to no connection and rarely communicate with each other, and just try to push their agenda behind the scenes, even if it hurts another member in the coalition. On the other hand, the Republicans are like the family that you see screaming at and beating their child in public for having a temper tantrum (or in the case of real life, shutting down the government). This only further fans the flames of the rivalry.

The public infighting happens when the party doesn't have the White House.

[ElectionsGuy]

I think in reality, the democrats. It seems that the GOP is more diverse with its fighting within its own circles, but the D's have a bigger coalition. All Republicans seems to have the same rhetoric, values, beliefs to me. Maybe Rick Santorum to Rand Paul is the biggest stretch you can get. But the Dems compromise groups of people from old democrats in Appalachia to staunch progressive, anti-war, anti-establishment activists in California.

[Person Man]

I think in reality, the democrats. It seems that the GOP is more diverse with its fighting within its own circles, but the D's have a bigger coalition. All Republicans seems to have the same rhetoric, values, beliefs to me. Maybe Rick Santorum to Rand Paul is the biggest stretch you can get. But the Dems compromise groups of people from old democrats in Appalachia to staunch progressive, anti-war, anti-establishment activists in California.

There aren't many Coal Country Democrats left though, even if there are many Southern Conservatives who claim to be Democrats. 

I would go with the Republicans being more diverse, at least amongst its voters in Presidential elections on social issues. How else do you get an Evangelical wave (though it was more likely that if you replaced Obamacare with Iraq, you get 2012) in 2004 where the top of ticket's voters were one third pro-choice?

[andrew_c]

Republicans, because there are multiple factions fighting for control of the party.

[Bureaucat]

Historically, I think you could make a case that whatever party includes the Southern Conservatives will have the most internal divisions and conflicts with other factions.  They have a long history of not playing well with others.

[Person Man]

Probably still democrats.  Latte-liberals and low income voters have almost nothing in common for the most part.

Business people and christian conservatives usually share some values with national defense, patriotism, etc., even if they split on gay marriage and abortion.

You say that as if Democrats are stateless in the country they born and raised in.

[Mister Mets]

Probably Democrats.

Their main constituencies are Jews, African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, gays, single white women and Union workers.

Republicans mainly have most white guys and married white women. There are factions within that group, but there are also factions among the Democratic constituencies.

The conflicting interests within the Republican party also apply to Democrats. Laws that help Hispanics might not help African-Americans, and laws that help African-Americans might not help single women.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

Probably Democrats, considering they have both the richest and the poorest Americans in her column.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Dems Blacks, Latinos and single moms

GOP married couples, whites and Arabs

[GaussLaw]

Dems Blacks, Latinos and single moms

GOP married couples, whites and Arabs

Not after 9/11.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

But aside from Asians, they are historically conservative.

Dems have the multicultural thing as of now due to Obama.

[Person Man]

Presently and down the road, the success of Democrats is to make sure they all vote (2008,2012) and the success of Republicans is to make just enough moderate minorities vote for them in Ohio, Florida or Colorado (2002, 2004, 1994) or that Democrats don't vote (2000, 2010).

In 1998 the Democrats simply didn't lose and in 2006, the Republicans didn't vote.

But this is about the effects of the demography and the OP didn't want this to be a discussion about demography.

The question is "Which party has the strangest bedfellows in terms of policy?"

With the Democrats, I don't see how a fast track to collective bargaining is ideologically inconsistent with allowing civil marriage to be divorced from parochial marriage or how unharassed access to reproductive health is inconsistent with  universal health care  based on applying a system of  subsidies, regulations and standardized communication protocols to the medical industry and current existing social programs....you get the picture.

On the other hand, I can see the inconsistencies with a new social program to dissuade fetuses from being aborted to a policy that increases the consumer's cost of child care. Then again, it is not inconsistent if this set of policies is looked at in the frame of zealously promoting a particular national identity as the sole form of nationhood and  social cohesion in our society.

[Badger]

I think both parties are pretty diverse in this sense, but there tends to be a lot more public infighting on the Republican side than on the Democratic side.

It's sort of like two dysfunctional families. The Democrats are the family that merely tolerate each other out of common self interest or obligation, but have little to no connection and rarely communicate with each other, and just try to push their agenda behind the scenes, even if it hurts another member in the coalition. On the other hand, the Republicans are like the family that you see screaming at and beating their child in public for having a temper tantrum (or in the case of real life, shutting down the government). This only further fans the flames of the rivalry.

The public infighting happens when the party doesn't have the White House.

Keaton's got it right.