There is no question that relationships exist in a larger social context that includes prevailing political attitudes. As much as people may wish they could turn off the constant noise of politicians clamoring for media attention, the decisions that these same politicians make have the potential to turn people’s lives around. From the cost of housing to legislation that impacts healthcare, couples find themselves grappling with daily actions that someone with elected authority is taking, both practical and ideological. When election time comes around, these issues often come to a head. With any luck, romantic partners find themselves taking the same positions. If they don’t, though, what happens next?

Underlining the importance of politics to relationship success, dating apps are now including questions that assess whether a potential match is right- or left-leaning. Clearly, they’re onto something about how these “outside influences” determine a couple’s romantic fate. When election time comes around, these issues often come to a head. With any luck, romantic partners find themselves taking the same positions. If they don’t, though, what happens next?

As you start to think about where political differences fit into your relationship’s dynamics, it might strike you that it’s not just your partner’s views that can come into play, but also the views of your partner’s family and friends. Even if your partner shares completely opposite positions from these individuals, you may find it distasteful if not upsetting to be around them even if politics (thankfully) never comes up as a topic of conversation. A part of you might wonder, additionally, how your partner can stand to be around them, especially if it’s the friends, not the family, whose views are so radically different from the two of you.

According to University of Michigan’s Amie Gordon and colleagues (2024), it’s more likely that people who form a committed relationship actually do agree with each other, in a phenomenon........

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