Low vaccination rate among Republicans ‘does not bode well’ for herd immunity
Northwestern faculty respond to partisan divide in vaccination rate among lawmakers
EVANSTON, Ill. – A recent news report showed Democratic lawmakers in both the Senate and the House now have a 100% vaccination rate, while just 44.8% of House Republicans are vaccinated and at least 92% of senators are. Some legislators were quoted saying vaccination is unnecessary because they have immunity from a prior COVID-19 infection.
Northwestern University political science and anthropology experts focused on COVID-19 research are available to comment.
James Druckman is the Payson S. Wild Professor of political science in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and a member of the University’s Institute for Policy Research. Druckman is also part of the university consortium conducting the 50-State COVID-19 surveys at covidstates.org. His research focuses on political preference formation and communication. He can be reached at druckman@northwestern.edu.
Quote from Professor Druckman
“This simply reflects the partisan differences we have seen with regard to vaccination in the public. For those hoping that the country reaches herd immunity, it is a shame as partisans are taking cues from elites on this. Thus, the low percentage of vaccination among Republicans in the House does not bode well for persuading unvaccinated Republican partisans.”
Thomas McDade is the Carlos Montezuma Professor of Anthropology at Weinberg and a fellow of the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern. He has been studying antibody response to the SARS-Cov-2 virus, through the SCAN project, an analysis of blood samples collected from nearly 10,000 people throughout Chicago. He can be reached at t-mcdade@northwestern.edu.
Quote from Professor McDade
“For those who believe they are immune after contracting COVID-19, it is important to know that mild or asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 do not generate strong and lasting antibody responses for most people. The best way to protect yourself — and the people around you — is to get vaccinated. The vaccines increase antibody levels and provide protection against the emerging variants. The more people we vaccinate, the safer we will all be.”