Consider the reasons why some voters ‘split their ticket’ when voting in US elections.

Split-ticket voting is voting for candidates of two or more parties for different offices at the same election. For example, voting for a Republican president but a Democrat governor of Congress. This is because elections in the US are candidate based, rather than party orientated. Voters are likely to choose presidents for their personality and the issues they personally support, rather than what party they are representing. Candidates are represented on an individual base such as the presidential TV debates which focus on the individual not the party they support. For example, in 2004, 4 states voted for George Bush but elected a Democrat to the senate.  Issues such as abortion, gun control and immigration are important issues in recent US elections so voters may be influenced to vote for…