Democrat or Republican

 

Democratic Party

Republican Party

Abortion

Pro-Choice

Pro-Life

Same-sex Marriage

No national federal same sex marriage ban.

Propose a Constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage.

Death Penalty

Do not support the death penalty.

Supports the death penalty.

Energy & Oil

Government should develop renewable energy.

Private sector, not the government should respond to energy needs.

Gun Control

Authorize assault weapons ban.

Support Second Amendment rights.

Health Care

Expand coverage and cut healthcare costs.

Universal healthcare is inefficient and too expensive to taxpayers.

Immigration

Have a path for aliens to become citizens.

Only legal immigrants can come through controlled borders.

Government

Big central government; government meets the needs of its citizens through agencies to help the disadvantaged.

Limited government; supports private/nonprofit organizations to help the disadvantaged. 

Spending

Supports spending on domestic social programs.

Supports spending on defense.

The majority of Democrats follow a liberal ideology.
The majority of Republicans favor a conservative ideology.
These are generalized positions and may vary according to how liberal or conservative a candidate is.

  • The Republican and Democratic parties are not the only parties that exist, and you may register under another party. However, only registered Democrat or Republican voters can participate in the Florida Primaries.  Florida is a closed primary state.
  • A Florida registered voter may vote for any party candidate in the general elections.
  • Content was summarized from the 2004 Platforms of both parties.  For more independent research please go to the respective party websites:

Democratic National Committee: www.democrats.org Florida Democratic Party: www.fladems.com
Republican National Committee: www.gop.com Florida Republican Party: www.rpof.org
Kids Voting Broward: www.kidsvotingbroward.org

The 2007-2008 Kids Voting Student Advisory Board prepared this chart for the annual High School Voter Registration Drive.  This table is generalized to help students make a party decision and is not endorsed by any political party or the Broward County Supervisor of Elections Office.