Poll: GOP party identification at ... 22%

The pattern of partisan change in recent years has been remarkably consistent across the nation. Since 2004, the GOP has lost at least five points in party identification in every region of the nation. Meanwhile, Democratic identification in 2009 is either at or just slightly above 2004 levels. The Northeast stands out from other parts of the country not for the magnitude of the shift, but the overall balance in favor of Democrats. Even in 2004 — when there were nearly as many Republicans as Democrats in the rest of the country — Democrats held a substantial 35% to 26% advantage in Northeastern states. That advantage has widened to a nearly two-to-one edge (38% to 20%) in 2009.