Elite polarization and mass policy attitudes: A study of the 2010 senate election

Objectives This study aims to test the extent to which campaigns along with partisanship polarized public attitudes on a series of major policy issues during the 2010 Senate elections. Methods Data are drawn from the 2010 Cooperative Congressional Election Study data and Campaign Media Analysis Group data, which are provided by Wesleyan Media Project. Results The findings of this article are two‐fold: First, the 2010 Senate campaigns did not sweepingly boost mass polarization on policy attitudes in general. Second, polarization effect only demonstrated among low‐information voters on economic policy issues but little on moral and non‐economic issues. Conclusion This article argues that elite‐driven mass polarization is based on a matrix of interconnecting varying degrees of information intensity, predispositions, and voters’ awareness level. In the context of low‐intensity campaigns, low‐information citizens are more likely to follow the party communications and thus are more likely to polarize their attitudes on self‐interest issues.