Contemporary American Politics – serie

What happens in an electoral environment involving female candidates? Do women face different challenges during the electoral process? How do gender dynamics alter the conventional norms of electoral politics? Do women campaign differently from men? Do male candidates pay more attention to women's issues, or make other strategic and behavioral changes when opposed by a female candidate? Author Richard Logan Fox answers these questions and many others with compelling evidence that suggests that women candidates are having a profound impact on the electoral process. In Gender Dynamics in Congressional Elections, Fox studies the congressional races of 1992 and 1994 in California in which a record 19 women were candidates for House seats. He contrasts the experiences of both the male and female candidates and sheds new light on the different challenges women face during political campaigns. Providing a groundbreaking examination of an understudied topic, Gender Dynamics in Congressional Elections will be essential for students and professionals in political science.

What happens in an electoral environment involving female candidates? Do women face different challenges during the electoral process? How do gender dynamics alter the conventional norms of electoral politics? Do women campaign differently from men? Do male candidates pay more attention to women's issues, or make other strategic and behavioral changes when opposed by a female candidate? Author Richard Logan Fox answers these questions and many others with compelling evidence that suggests that women candidates are having a profound impact on the electoral process. In Gender Dynamics in Congressional Elections, Fox studies the congressional races of 1992 and 1994 in California in which a record 19 women were candidates for House seats. He contrasts the experiences of both the male and female candidates and sheds new light on the different challenges women face during political campaigns. Providing a groundbreaking examination of an understudied topic, Gender Dynamics in Congressional Elections will be essential for students and professionals in political science.

The Congressional Black Caucus has grown both in size and in prominence in its short lifetime. Robert Singh considers the actual impact of the CBC on public policy in this new volume for the Contemporary American Politics series. Singh argues that while the CBC forcefully articulates the concerns of African Americans, it has not only proven an ineffective interest lobby for their issues, but has become increasingly irrelevant as a labor union for its own members. Drawing on extensive data, The Congressional Black Caucus provides the first coherent and balanced overview of both the electoral and institutional forces, which together shape the CBCÆs fortunes. The Congressional Black Caucus will be of considerable interest to scholars and students in the areas of legislative process, race and politics, public policy, and political sociology.

The Congressional Black Caucus has grown both in size and in prominence in its short lifetime. Robert Singh considers the actual impact of the CBC on public policy in this new volume for the Contemporary American Politics series. Singh argues that while the CBC forcefully articulates the concerns of African Americans, it has not only proven an ineffective interest lobby for their issues, but has become increasingly irrelevant as a labor union for its own members. Drawing on extensive data, The Congressional Black Caucus provides the first coherent and balanced overview of both the electoral and institutional forces, which together shape the CBCÆs fortunes. The Congressional Black Caucus will be of considerable interest to scholars and students in the areas of legislative process, race and politics, public policy, and political sociology.

Cyberspace is no longer a mystery. It has become irrevocably intertwined with everyday life, facilitating everything from reading the news and paying the bills to ordering birthday presents. We are in the midst of a revolution in mass communication, and there now exists the technology for creating new forms of community, empowering citizens, and challenging existing power structures. But will such changes occur?

In this fascinating book Michael Margolis and David Resnick ponder the effects of cyberspace on American Politics. Our political system tends to normalize political activity, and thus, the Internet's vast potential could be lost, rendering it just another purveyor of ignored information. This broad examination begins with a history of cyberspace and moves through discussions of parties, political interest groups, candidates, mass media, information dissemination, and commercial uses of the Internet.

Politics as Usual offers an innovative and exciting look into previously ignored aspects of the Internet and American politics.

Cyberspace is no longer a mystery. It has become irrevocably intertwined with everyday life, facilitating everything from reading the news and paying the bills to ordering birthday presents. We are in the midst of a revolution in mass communication, and there now exists the technology for creating new forms of community, empowering citizens, and challenging existing power structures. But will such changes occur?

In this fascinating book Michael Margolis and David Resnick ponder the effects of cyberspace on American Politics. Our political system tends to normalize political activity, and thus, the Internet's vast potential could be lost, rendering it just another purveyor of ignored information. This broad examination begins with a history of cyberspace and moves through discussions of parties, political interest groups, candidates, mass media, information dissemination, and commercial uses of the Internet.

Politics as Usual offers an innovative and exciting look into previously ignored aspects of the Internet and American politics.

A theory of political ambition is developed in which political actors seek to increase their territorial jurisdiction and/or the size of their electoral constituency. Ease of entry and advancement into state and national politics, however, are shown to vary markedly across the nation. Strategic considerations play an important role in career decisions. Legislators take into account whether or not they will face an incumbent, the quality of likely opponents in primaries, the cost of campaigns, the relative value of their present office versus a higher office, and looming term limits. For example, as a result of term limits on state legislators, patient, highly selective, and successful moves up the political ladder have been replaced by early exits from office and riskier challenges for higher office. Those who are too liberal or conservative for their party and state are less likely to win statewide races. Distance from the "winning state party position" serve as a key to understanding which senators are reelected and which House members enter and win Senate primaries. It also explains why those preparing for statewide races shift their positions gradually over many years to improve their odds of success.

If elections are easily predicted and voting behavior is easily explained with just a few fundamental variables, it seems quite plausible to argue that campaigns don't matter. This book attempts to answer the question, "Do campaigns matter?" by analyzing changes in public opinion during and across several presidential election campaigns. The crux of the argument is that although the national political and economic context of the election is very important, campaigns also play a crucial role in determining election outcomes. In particular, campaign events, such as conventions and debates, are primarily responsible for changes in public opinion that occur during the campaign period. Using many different data sources from several presidential campaigns, this important volume demonstrates that election outcomes are jointly produced by campaigns and national conditions. Covering an important and neglected subject, Do Campaigns Matter? is essential for students in political science at both graduate and undergraduate levels. Its original research, imaginative approach at conceptualizing data, and excellent empirical analysis, make it a must read for researchers and professionals as well.