Different parties, living under same roof

She’s a staunch Democrat, raised by parents she calls “liberal hippies,” and he’s the reddest of Republicans, having worked in the White House for Ronald Reagan, and later for George H.W. Bush.

“I just want to watch the debate with someone who agrees with me,” Katie Stebbins told her husband in their Springfield, Conn., home during one of the presidential debates. “He said: ‘Well what’s the fun in that?’”

“My husband is much more cool. He doesn’t feel the need to win ... but I want to sleep by the edge of the bed. I take it personally.”

By now, most of us have our candidates in mind, but what if those closest to you — those living under the same roof — have diametrically opposed viewpoints when it comes to who should lead the country? What if you’re living with the very person who is going to cancel out your vote?

Nick Hauptfeld of Berlin, Conn., only half-jokes that it might be amusing to take his Obama bumper sticker and apply it to his 14-year-old son Jonathan’s school locker.

“It reminds me of ‘Family Ties,’” Hauptfeld says. He’s an Obama supporter, while Jonathan has eyes only for McCain. “It was a television show where the parents were very liberal and then they have a son who is ‘Joe Republican.’”

Hauptfeld’s wife, Laurie, says, “It’s kind of a shock that (Jonathan) is as far to the right as he is... I’m still wondering, how come he’s not more in line with us?”

Is political disagreement the type of issue that can undo a marriage or destabilize a family? Experts say it depends on how deeply held one’s political affiliations are, how tied into one’s life philosophy. It also depends, of course, on how a couple deals with those differences: Are they able to discuss it without getting angry, or, if that’s impossible, to steer clear of politics altogether?

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