Story highlights Jonathan Weiler: Donald Trump is not your typical contemporary Republican conservative

Best predictor of Trump's support may be opinions on parenting, he says

Jonathan Weiler is director of undergraduate studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and co-author of " Authoritarianism and Polarization in American Politics." The views expressed are his own.

(CNN) Donald Trump's victory in the winner-takes-all Arizona primary Tuesday night makes it even more likely that he will be the eventual Republican nominee for president of the United States. It's a political ascent that continues to shock and unnerve the political establishment.

Yet for many, his base of support remains a mystery. Trump, after all, is not your typical contemporary Republican conservative. He opposes trade deals that he says have hurt working Americans. He lambasts President George W. Bush for his feckless and disastrous invasion of Iraq. Targeting an even more sacred cow, he points out that it was on Bush's watch that thousands of Americans were murdered on 9/11. And bizarrely for a GOP aspirant to the highest office, Trump has praised Planned Parenthood -- an organization anathema to most conservatives -- for having provided health services to millions of women (though he does believe it should be denied federal funding because it houses abortion services).

Trump's idiosyncrasies have prompted many conservatives to insist he's not one of them. And yet, he has won a clear majority of the Republican primary contests, many in overwhelming fashion, in virtually every geographical region of the country. Why? There are numerous reasons to be sure. But one central source of strength for Trump is authoritarian-minded voters.

According to these polls, the single best predictor of support for Trump lay in how respondents answered four questions about parenting. Specifically, individuals who believed that raising kids to be well-behaved, obedient, respectful of elders and well-mannered were likely Trump voters. And those who prioritized the importance of independence, curiosity, thinking for oneself and considerateness were not.

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