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Political Behavior of the American Electorate
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Political Behavior of the American Electorate

13th Edition

Other Titles in:
Elections

February 2014 | 336 pages | CQ Press
The 2012 elections took place in a time of intense party polarization and a weak economy, yet the incumbent president won reelection. How did Obama pull off his victory? New authors Elizabeth Theiss-Morse and Michael Wagner continue the tradition of Flanigan and Zingale by using American National Election Study data to provide a thorough analysis of the 2012 elections and of American political behavior more generally. The authors explore get-out-the-vote efforts and the reasons people voted the way they did, as well as the nature and impact of partisanship, issues, and news media coverage in 2012—all with an eye toward understanding the trends that led up to the election.
 
Tables and Figures
 
Acknowledgments
 
Introduction
 
1. Democratic Beliefs and American Democracy
 
2. Electoral Context and Strategy
 
3. Turnout and Elections
 
4. Partisanship and Party Change
 
5. Public Opinion and Ideology.
 
6. Group Characteristics and Social Networks
 
7. Political Communication and the Mass Media
 
8. Vote Choice and Electoral Decisions
 
Appendix: Survey Research Methods
 
Index

“I like how Political Behavior of the American Electorate explains historical data on the role of partisanship, issues, and other candidate characteristics in voting behavior. The themes that I emphasize and for which the data and discussion in the book are useful include public opinion and democratic competence as well as partisan conflict and polarization.”

Robert Y. Shapiro
Columbia University

“From my course evaluations, students laud the readability of the text and how it cogently and succinctly summarizes what can be very intricate research findings from the extant literature. In addition, my students indicate that the text is very engaging. I have noted independently of student comments that they are better able to comprehend the course material as a result of the authors’ writing style.”

J. Edwin Benton, University of South Florida
J. Edwin Benton, University of South Florida

“The coverage in this book is outstanding. The suffrage and turnout chapter, in particular, is fantastic. The book speaks so well to the issues I want to cover that I would be hard-pressed to do without it when teaching political behavior. The authors have done a tremendous job of incorporating relevant literature, from both the past and present.”

Christopher Devine
Mount Vernon Nazarene University

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 3

Chapter 5


William Homer Flanigan

William H. Flanigan is professor emeritus of political science at the University of Minnesota. He is the coeditor (With Joel H. Silbey and Allan G. Bogue) of The History of American Electoral Behavior. With Jerome M. Clubb and Nancy H. Zingale, he coauthored Partisan Realignment: Voters, Parties and Government in American History and coedited Analyzing Electoral History: A Guide to the Study of American Voter Behavior. More About Author

Nancy H. Zingale

Nancy H. Zingale is professor emerita of political science at the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota). With Jerome M. Clubb and William H. Flanigan, she coauthored Partisan Realignment: Voters, Parties and Government in American History and coedited Analyzing Electoral History: A Guide to the Study of American Voter Behavior. More About Author

Elizabeth A. Theiss-Morse

Elizabeth Theiss-Morse is the Willa Cather Professor of Political Science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is the author of several award-winning books including Who Counts as an American?, Stealth Democracy, Congress as Public Enemy, and With Malice Toward Some. More About Author

Michael W. Wagner

Michael W. Wagner is assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There, he is also the Louis A. Maier Faculty Development Fellow and holds an affiliated position in the Department of Political Science. He has won awards for his teaching and scholarship in the area of political communication in American politics. More About Author

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ISBN: 9781452240442
$56.00