And Speaking of Rasmussen...

Partisan Trends
Number of Democrats Falls to New Low, Down Six Points Since Election 2008:

In December, the number of Americans identifying themselves as Democrats fell to the lowest level recorded in more than seven years of monthly tracking by Rasmussen Reports.

Currently, 35.5% of American adults view themselves as Democrats. That’s down from 36.0 a month ago and from 37.8% in October. Prior to December, the lowest total ever recorded for Democrats was 35.9%, a figure that was reached twice in 2005. See the History of Party Trends from January 2004 to the present.

The number of Republicans inched up by a point in December to 34.0%. That’s the highest total for Republicans since December 2007, just before the 2008 presidential campaign season began.

I wouldn't expect to see any large increase in the number of people who self identify as Republicans. If anything, Conservatives care more about conservative candidates than they do about party affiliation. Unfortunately, Sen. John Cornyn, head of the NRSC, shows no sign that he has any understanding of the Conservative voter.

On the other hand, I know more than one Democrat who is embarrassed by their vote in 2008. They may not have gone to the trouble of officially changing their party affiliation but they also aren't eager to be identified as Democrats.

By an almost 2 to 1 ratio more people identify as "conservative" rather than "liberal". Further, more people identify as "conservative" than "moderate".

If more people vote their ideology rather than by party affiliation it will force the political parties and candidates to be more responsive to the voters. The days when people automatically vote according to party may be behind us. If so, it will benefit the country as a whole.