Partisan Differences in Physical Distancing Predict Infections and Mortality During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Few things bind disparate groups together like a common obstacle. Yet, numerous polls suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic has been subject to a deep partisan divide. Using geo-tracking data of over 17 million smartphone users around the United States, we examined whether partisan differences predict objective physical-distancing behaviors. U.S. counties that voted for Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton in 2016 exhibited 16% less physical...