Why working-class people account for around 1% of lawmakers in the US – and only 2% in the average democracy around the world

Campaigning anywhere for any office at any level of government is personally burdensome.

By: Noam Lupu, Vanderbilt University and Nicholas Carnes, Duke University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: August 20, 2026

Words: 1,119

Last Updated: 2 months ago

By Noam Lupu, Vanderbilt University and Nicholas Carnes, Duke University

Both major U.S. political parties regularly tout their commitment to working-class Americans and claim to be the party of the working class. However, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans nominate many candidates who spent substantial time in working-class jobs.

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