I Married a Republican: Love and Politics

If you had told me ten years ago that I was going to marry a Republican, I never would have believed you. 

I met my husband, David, in 2003, just as the battle between Democratic presidential candidates was heating up to determine who would run against President George W. Bush in the 2004 election.

I was working as a television reporter in South Carolina and was frequently assigned to cover the hype leading up to the state’s primary election. 

South Carolina is important in national politics because it is typically the only state with an early primary that has a sizeable African-American population. As a result, the presidential hopefuls came knocking—from Senator John Kerry announcing his candidacy in Charleston to Senator John Edwards visiting a small coastal town where steelworkers were losing their jobs. I followed the candidates around, reporting on their efforts to woo voters.

Although I don’t consider myself particularly political—and of course, journalists are never supposed to weigh in with their personal views—I will admit that I am a Democrat. I will also admit that—gasp—I married a Republican.

Because I spent so much time covering politics when we were first dating, it was naturally a topic of conversation when I got off work. I was a little shocked to learn on our second date or so that this handsome guy I was falling for fast was very different from me politically. But I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was to date across party lines.

When we were first getting to know each other, our differences made for great conversation and were especially fun to joke about. I remember David sending me an email invitation to join a Dick Cheney Fan Club. It that’s not romantic, I don’t know what it is.

Shortly after I had moved in with him, I came home to find an 8X10 photo of President George W. Bush and Laura Bush hanging on the refrigerator. It had come in the mail with a form letter thanking David for his contributions over the past few years. He thought it would be fun to see my reaction.

Like some Republicans, my husband is not socially conservative, but he does believe strongly in fiscal restraint. He grew up on a farm and had a no-frills childhood where everyone did plenty of hard work. At age seventeen, he enlisted in the Army and later went off to war while most of his friends were enjoying college life.