Democrats' Numbers Fall Under Obama

Republicans have closed the gap when it comes to the number of Americans who identify with their party as opposed to the Democrats with the Democratic advantage shrinking each quarter that President Obama has been in office, according to a Gallup analysis of its date between July 1 and Sept. 30.

Those identifying themselves as Democrats or as leaning to them stands at 48 percent compared to 42 percent for the Republicans. At the beginning of 2009, the Democrats' advantage was 52 percent to 39 percent, one point shy of the highest mark in 2008. When Gallup started tracking this figure in 2005, the two parties were tied at 46 percent each.

The movement towards the Republicans is driven mostly by independents going in that direction. Independents who leaned Democratic stood at 17 percent in the first quarter of the year to 11 percent for Republicans. Now, Republican-leaning independents out number those who lean towards the Democrats by 15 percent to 13 percent.

Gallup said that independents are more likely to oppose than support healthcare reform, and to express concerns about increased government spending and the expansion of government power. Thus, the drop in Democratic support is partly a response to concerns about the policies Obama and the Democratic Congress are pursuing.