As an incredibly liberal woman who was born and raised in a pretty conservative state, this is a topic that my friends and I have discussed and experienced firsthand many, many, many times. Svetlana Repnitskaya via Getty ImagesSo when Reddit user u/tipputappi asked the question, “Why are so many conservative guys seemingly into dating liberal women?” In r/TwoXChromosomes, I knew the discussion would not only be incredibly interesting but important and relatable as well:1. “There aren’t enough conservative women out there for them. Then there are things beyond political leaning they may want in a partner, which further narrows the pool.”2. “Instant gratification. They want sex right now. A conservative woman would make them wait until marriage, and they don’t want to wait. After all, purity and celibacy are only important for women. Being sexually active is only a stain on women.”3. “It may also be the fact that many conservative men believe in women submitting to their husband, so they may figure that liberal women will give up their liberal views after marriage.”Svetlana Repnitskaya via Getty Images4. “Liberal women aren’t on them about their masculinity.”5. “Liberal women expect less from men and are willing to contribute more to the household financially. These men want the benefits of modern feminism (50/50 bills, women’s entire income and ability to accrue assets) and the privileges of being the family patriarch with none of the work to justify that role (woman still does the housework, raises the kids, defers to the husband’s whims, etc).”Organic Media via Getty Images6. “I would also guess a significant portion of conservative women just settle down with their high school sweethearts and are never hitting the dating pool. If anyone is getting married at like 20 or 21 years old, it’s them.”7. “As someone currently in the dating pool, it really sucks. I’ve been catfished by more than a couple conservative men who are convinced that me being completely ideologically opposite to them is no big deal. They don’t respect women’s views.”8. “It’s also that conservative men and women don’t like each other much. They don’t feel empathy properly, which makes them shitty partners, even for other conservatives.”9. “For a lot of conservatives, your political party is like rooting for a sports team. They think a conservative man dating a liberal woman is like a Dodgers fan dating a Yankees fan. It’s cute and funny, rather than a dire mismatch of values and feelings.”10. “Have you ever seen Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast?’ Know how Gaston has a bunch of women fawning over how ‘manly’ he is, but is obsessed with Belle because she’s the one who can’t stand him? Same basic principle.”11. “Conquest fantasy. They like the idea of ‘breaking’ us and showing us the error of our ways.”12. “They want the perks of a conservative wife but not the guidelines of dating a conservative woman: ponying up for every meal, treating her like a helpless princess, being inhibited, and probably having to impress the whole family. The men want to go have more relaxed fun with a liberal.”Pablo Jeffs Munizaga - Fototrekking via Getty Images13. “If all women are more liberal than you, it doesn’t much matter to you how liberal they are. Either you get them to ignore their better interest and date you, or you don’t.”14. “There really aren’t that many true ‘trad’ women out there on the dating market. Sorry, but if you’re 30 years old and don’t have at least one kid in elementary school, you’re not trad. Trad people meet in church or in conservative colleges and get married right after graduation. They don’t move to LA or NYC and date around.”15. “A lot of them are initially attracted to their traits: higher education, professional ambition, financial independence, empathy, etc. Those traits may look good at a distance to them but are a threat once in the relationship, thus the bait and switch we often see.”16. “You think your oppressor doesn’t want to f*ck you? Be for real.”And finally, here’s one you might want to sit with for a bit:17. “Conservative men consistently engage in activities that don’t align with their family values. To them, it doesn’t matter if they fall outside their moral bounds as long as they maintain control of their women. How many times have we seen conservative public figures be outed for cheating or engaging with sex workers?”“On paper, they wouldn’t agree with the moral turpitude of a prostitute’s lifestyle or advocate for her needs, but they will gladly solicit her for sex. Except it is not just sex workers — they do this with all women. They are able to keep their label while exploiting us for their desires. There is nothing admirable or worth championing about conservative men fiending over liberal women, especially in today’s political climate.”Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.