A Political Guide for Marriage

By Fawn Weaver on Friday, November 2, 2012

The title for this blog post is really “A Political Guide for Marriage: What To Do When You’re Red & He’s Blue,” but there simply wasn’t enough space.  Keith and I were chatting with friends last night, a couple happily married more than 50 years, that we love and respect completely.  They had a question for us, “So how did you vote on the death penalty initiative?”  In California, there is an initiative on the ballot to ban the death penalty and change our state to the highest punishment being life without chance of parole.

Keith and I looked at each other and just laughed because we have very different views on this topic.  I won’t tell you which one of us are on which side as this is not a political site and I have no desire to delve into political or social views.  But I will say this, when Keith and I shared with them our respective views, our blood never boiled, we didn’t get worked up and we remained best friends throughout the conversation.  I respect his opinion.  He respects mine.  But on this issue, we simply disagree.

Our friends were both leaning in the direction of the way I felt about this issue but told us they didn’t start off in agreement.  ”After a little bit of fighting we’re now on the same page,” they joked.  We know them well enough to know they may have disagreed but they certainly didn’t fight over political differences.  The presidential election comes once every four years.  Political pundits and media gain higher ratings by creating large divides between each side and adding fuel to the flame as often as possible.  That is their job.  But they have no jurisdiction in my home.  

When the election is over, this country will still have a president (same or new), some folks will go to congress and some will be put out to pasture.  Certain propositions will pass and many will fail.  But what will not fail is my will, desire and determination to stay on the same page with my husband when it comes to our relationship and marriage.  Disagreeing on political views is par for the course when you marry someone who is different from yourself and in our case, opposites certainly attracted.

QUESTION: Do you and your husband have the same political views?  If not, what do you do to keep the peace when you have opposing views?

Until Monday…make it a great weekend!

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Fawn Weaver

Founder at Happy Wives Club
Fawn Weaver is the USA Today® and New York Times® bestselling author of Happy Wives Club: One Woman's Worldwide Search for the Secrets of a Great Marriage, adopting the same name as the Club she founded in 2010. The Happy Wives Club community has grown to include more than 900,000 women in over 110 countries around the world. When she’s not blogging or working on her next project, she's happily doting over her husband of nearly eleven years, Keith.

 

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  • Tammy Campbell Brooks

    Yes we do…

  • Gaby Jmz

    We don't talk about it :) !

  • Jennifer Lawhorn Travis

    We try not to voice our opinions unless asked. We also try to explain to each other why we believe what we do (based on our experiences and such) when an opinion does come up. Understanding where one comes from is key to understanding. Accepting that they won't think like you and accepting that it doesn't make your love any less intense is huge.

  • Dani Walton

    We don't, and we just respect each other enough to talk about what we need to and walk away being alright with the difference.

  • Kayli Nagel

    While yes we have the same political views, when we do disagree, we agree to disagree.

  • Stacey Skenandore Olsen

    We do not share the same views, but we do share respect for each other. Keeping the peace is easy.

  • Gloria Magnaye-Reyes

    We justify our opinion but we respect each others view… and for me better to have different opinions rather than no opinion at all:)

  • Sofia Lau

    We dont have same political views neither same religion. But we have such a huge love and 2 lovely kids that we are raising together so we don´t talk political and when it comes to religion we join to our main celebrations and support each other. Itá about respect and tolerance. 13 years together shows that love and understanding are the most important thing in any relation ship.

  • Brittany Nielson

    We agree for the most part, but because we are both independents and don't ascribe to either party particularly, there are times when we don't agree on something. We just make sure that any debates we have are healthy. We each make sure that the other person has a chance to completely air their viewpoints. If we know after discussing our viewpoints that we aren't going to agree, we agree to disagree and move on. When it comes to politics, we know that we don't necessarily need to agree all the time for things to be healthy, but we do need to respect that we both have opinions that we have come to based on research and deep thought.

  • Marjoerie Jhing Ryczk

    We do and luckily we believe the same way we believe. We discuss about everything but not much politics but we have same candidate :) We respect each others oipinon(s).LOVE!

  • Rachel Dorton Sarella

    When we got married we had very different views but now he has moved to my camp :)

  • Kelly Truax

    We typically have very similar views. If anything, I'm *more* conservative than him, which is astounding. When those differences arise, I take into account that he is the leader of my family and therefore has the final say so. I'm sure many people won't understand that, but that's how we operate here.
    17 minutes ago · Like

  • Edna Sarmiento Licudan

    We say our opinions in nice and polite way. And most of all we respect both views and opinions. But in terms of economic, emotional and intelectual aspects, we always meet halfway. And considering one's feeling and thinking is one way of being successful together.