Design, Meaning and Choice in Direct Democracy

Dr. Shauna Reilly is an Assistant Professor at Northern Kentucky University, specializing in political behavior, and does extensive research in the area of direct democracy with her teaching and research interests focusing on political behaviour in American and comparative applications. She is published in the area of citizen electoral responses to ballot issues and representative acquisitions. Her experience and research on direct democracy provide insight into this multi-methodological approach to ballot participation. Further, her experience in the professional realm of politics provides a unique approach to this research and gives insight into multiple perspectives of this issue.

'"Let the voters decide" is a frequent refrain of those promoting ballot initiatives. But is the initiative process accessible to all voters, or only the well-educated? Additionally, do initiative sponsors see voters as competent or are they simply cynical manipulators of public opinion? Shauna Reilly examines these important issues and others in Design, Meaning and Choice in Direct Democracy: The Influences of Petitioners and Voters.' David B. Magleby, Brigham Young University, USA

• Chapter 1 Introduction to Direct Democracy and Political Comprehension; Chapter 2 Critical Evaluation of Citizen Comprehension and Direct Democracy; Chapter 3 Theoretical Foundations; Chapter 4 Petitioners and the Oregon Process; Chapter 5 Petitioner Attitudes and Activities; Chapter 6 1An earlier version of this chapter was published as “Ballot Question Readability and Roll-off: The Impact of Language Complexity” by Shauna Reilly and Sean Richey in Political Research Quarterly. It is available through Online First from Oct. 16, 2009. http://prq.sagepub.com/cgi/rapidpdf/1065912909349629v1; Chapter 7 Topic Selection and Language Barriers; Chapter 8 Individual Votes; Chapter 9 The Future and Consequences of Comprehension on Ballot Propositions;