Nearly 5,000 San Diegans Left The Republican Party In January

Monday, February 15, 2021

Above: A voter casts her ballot during early voting at the San Diego County Of Registrars Office on Oct. 7, 2020.

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Nearly 5,000 registered Republicans in San Diego County left the party last month. Some re-registered as Democrats, some as members of the American Independent Party and some stated no party ... Read more →

Aired: February 15, 2021 | Transcript

Information from the San Diego County Registrar of Voters reveals that 4,700 registered Republicans changed their party affiliation in January of this year.

Of the nearly 5,000 Republican defectors, 1,941 chose NPP, or no party preference; 1,122 became registered Democrats; and 1,255 signed up with the American Independent Party.

Was the larger-than-usual decline in Republican registrations due to long-term trends? Donald Trump's behavior? The siege of the U.S. Capitol on January 6? It's hard to tell.

Journalist Ken Stone of Times of San Diego talked with Midday Edition about this post-election phenomenon. He noted that Tom Shepard, a well-known former political consultant for local Republican candidates, described the number as a "significant number for one post-election month," although, Shepard said, numbers of registered Republicans in the state and county have been declining for some time.