A disproportionate number of Democrats tune in to the Republican debates

Disproportionate number of democrats watch GOP debates.

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A disproportionate amount of Democrats show interest in watching the Republican debates, according to a recently released Pew survey reported by Politico. On the flip side, far fewer Republicans tune in to watch the Democratic showdowns.

Among people who have watched at least one debate, 70 percent of Democrats said they have seen a Republican debate, according to the survey that was released prior to Thursday night's debate. Only about half of Republicans responding to the same question said they had watched a Democratic debate.

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There could be a number of reasons for such a result, not the least of which is the draw of watching Donald Trump's performances. Additionally, there has been outcry about the Democratic debates' extremely inconvenient timing — all the debates have been on weekends, including the Saturday before Christmas and a Sunday in the middle of Martin Luther King Jr. Day's holiday weekend.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.