In the world of academia, when one advances to a higher level of education, their mental evolution, increased knowledge, and ability to think independently is symbolized by the ceremonial ritual of moving their mortarboard tassel-- from the RIGHT to the LEFT. Thus, so it is with sociopolitical leanings.
The informed and learned cannot, by necessity, be conservative and inflexible through complete resistance to that which does not further support their already-held beliefs. Instead, as knowledge grows, once-staunch political views begin to bend and reshape themselves, and reason overcomes rigidity. New information, anecdotal evidence, the views of others, and hard facts work together in the mind of the true thinker, overriding media rhetoric and, inevitably, beginning to sway their views more to the left-- where free thought is prudent, and open-mindedness encouraged.