Behind political affiliation: How moral values, identity politics, and party loyalty have affected COVID-19 vaccination.

ABSTRACT: Falling short of its vaccination goals, the United States faced a critical challenge in ending the pandemic, with political partisanship emerging as a barrier to COVID-19 vaccination uptake. This study investigates the relationship between partisanship, moral values, and vaccination compliance in 3099 US counties during the vaccination campaign, employing descriptive statistics and panel regressions. The findings reveal that the relationship between political partisanship and vaccination uptake varies highly when considering three factors: historical party rootedness, party factions, and co-partisan state governors. We report a widening vaccination rate gap between Republican and Democratic counties, particularly when considering the historical partisanship of a county. Our analysis also r

SUBMITTER: Fortunato P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12469336 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature