This book presents in-depth analyses of the wave of political protest and unrest that spread throughout Latin America between 2010 and 2015 in order to answer a question that has been challenging social scientists all over the region: why some countries have faced a divorce between their social movements and political parties while others have not? The contributions gathered in this volume intend to show that the logic of political representation in Latin America and its supposed "crisis" is not a common and constant feature for all region. Some countries like Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico seem to have experienced a process of autonomization of its social movements vis-a-vis its institutional political system. However, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Uruguay have not seen such a split between civil society and the political parties. Bringing together eight case studies of the countries mentioned and a general assessment of the situation in the whole region, this book presents some interesting findings that will contribute to the discussions about the political representation crisis in Latin America, providing valuable resources for political leaders, researchers, policy makers and social activists in the region.

Although democracy is, in principle, the antithesis of dynastic rule, families with multiple members in elective office continue to be common around the world. In most democracies, the proportion of such "democratic dynasties" declines over time, and rarely exceeds ten percent of all legislators. Japan is a startling exception, with over a quarter of all legislators in recent years being dynastic. In Dynasties and Democracy, Daniel M. Smith sets out to explain when and why dynasties persist in democracies, and why their numbers are only now beginning to wane in Japan-questions that have long perplexed regional experts. Smith introduces a compelling comparative theory to explain variation in the presence of dynasties across democracies and political parties. Drawing on extensive legislator-level data from twelve democracies and detailed candidate-level data from Japan, he examines the inherited advantage that members of dynasties reap throughout their political careers-from candidate selection, to election, to promotion into cabinet. Smith shows how the nature and extent of this advantage, as well as its consequences for representation, vary significantly with the institutional context of electoral rules and features of party organization. His findings extend far beyond Japan, shedding light on the causes and consequences of dynastic politics for democracies around the world.

On November 8, 2016, American voters surprised the world by electing a rank outsider with no previous political experience, businessman and celebrity Donald J. Trump, to become the 45th President of the United States after one of the most divisive and contentious campaigns in recent history. In this short book, Peter Kivisto analyses how this happened, focusing on who Trump is and the narratives about him and his candidacy that evolved during the campaign, who his supporters are and what their worldview is, and the role of the media, right-wing Christians, and the Republican Party in making Trump's victory possible. The Trump phenomenon must be viewed as a manifestation of right-wing populism, a movement which has serious implications for democratic values and practices, and this book examines how it took hold in America to put one of the most controversial presidents ever elected into the White House.

Historic Firsts in U.S. Elections:Trailblazing Candidates in Gubernatorial, Congressional, and Mayoral Campaigns examines barrier-breaking figures across various types of elective offices and constituent groups. The moment in which historic firsts enter the electoral arena, and the unique campaigns that ensue, are shown to be symbolically empowering. These change agents on the campaign trail become lighting rods for more liberal policies, and their candidacies are tied to questions of representation, electability, and performance. The distinctive combinations of race, ethnicity, and gender identities represented here translate into voter excitement to go to the polls and participate in other ways. Original chapters by respected scholars and practitioners consider how recent breakthrough elections are similar to yet different from past elections for gubernatorial, congressional, and mayoral offices. The shadow of Donald Trump's wildly unconventional U.S. presidency looms over this groundbreaking analysis, linking local to national level politics. For students of politics across the curriculum, this book expands the theoretical capacity of intersectionality research and links it to voter mobilization and electoral success.

This open access book carefully explores the relationship between social democracy and its working-class electorate in Western Europe. Relying on different indicators, it demonstrates an important transformation in the class basis of social democracy. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the working-class vote is strongly fragmented and social democratic parties face competition on multiple fronts for their core electorate - and not only from radical right parties. Starting from a reflection on 'working-class parties' and using a sophisticated class schema, the book paints a nuanced and diversified picture of the trajectory of social democracy that goes beyond a simple shift from working-class to middle-class parties. Following a detailed description, the book reviews possible explanations of workers' new voting patterns and emphasizes the crucial changes in parties' ideologies. It closes with a discussion on the role of the working class in social democracy's future electoral strategies.

On February 10, 2007, Barack Obama stood before the Illinois capital building and announced his potentially historic presidential bid. The next day, he was in Iowa Falls, campaigning. He was far from the first--Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Edwards, John McCain, and Mitt Romney were already swarming the Hawkeye State, seeking votes behind every hay bale.
Why Iowa?
After all, in the lead-up to the 2008 presidential primary, both Iowa and New Hampshire have come under significant fire--as usual. Critics like Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) have charged that these early contests dominate the nomination process, yet are badly out of step with the ideology and demographics of the party and the country writ large. However, while New Hampshire has suffered a serious setback, Iowa has once again emerged as the first presidential primary contest, in part by arguing that its Precinct Caucus was a time-honored tradition that helped winnow the field with good old retail politicking and grassroots activism.
This debate comes to a head this coming Winter, when tens of thousands of Iowans will troop to libraries and churches, prepared for an hour or more of party business. Each of these party meetings, or "caucuses," will hold straw polls, the results of which will be broadcast around the world. One analysis found that the Caucus generates 143 times as much media coverage as other presidential primary contests, controlling for the date and size of the contest. In other words, being first thrusts the Iowa Caucus onto a towering public stage with extraordinary public interest.
Both of these factors--the normative public debate and the empirical public frenzy--demonstrate the need for a veryclose look at the Caucus, in all its warts and beauty. Grassroots Rules" was written to provide just such a study.

The Routledge Handbook of Local Elections and Voting in Europe represents the standard reference text and practical resource for everybody who analyzes issues such as local electoral systems, voting behavior, or political representation in Europe. It provides comprehensive and expert coverage of 40 European countries - organized along the respective local state traditions - and in addressing a wide range of important questions related to local elections and voting, it broadens the scope of existing analyses quantitatively as well as qualitatively. Finally, it affords a more theoretically grounded typology of local elections and voting. Each country chapter is written by a leading expert and follows a rigorous conceptual framework for cross-national comparisons, providing an overview of the local government system, details on the place of local elections within the multilevel political system, specific features of the electoral system, analysis of the main electoral outcomes in recent decades, and, finally, reflective discussion. Representative democracy is as widespread at the local as at the national level, and as the significance of local authorities in Europe has increased in recent decades, local elections represent a crucial area of study. The Routledge Handbook of Local Elections and Voting in Europe is an authoritative and essential reference text for scholars and students interested in local electoral politics and, more broadly, European studies, public administration, and political science.

This book explores the ways in which the emergence of the 'new' daily mass press of the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries represented a hugely significant period in histories of both the British press and the British political system Drawing on a parallel analysis of election-time newspaper content and archived political correspondence, the author argues that the 'new dailies' were a welcome and vibrant addition to the mass political culture that existed in Britain prior to World War One Chapters explore the ways in which the three 'new dailies' - Mail, Express, and Mirror - represented political news during the four general elections of the period; how their content intersected with, and became a part of, the mass consumer culture of pre-Great War Britain; and the differing ways political parties reacted to this new press, and what those reactions said about broader political attitudes towards the worth of 'mass' political communication This book will be of interest to students and scholars of media history, British popular politics, journalism history, and media studies

The British general election of 1931 marked the culmination of a period of political and economic crisis, and has long been regarded as a watershed in twentieth-century British history. In the summer of 1931 a struggling Labour government collapsed; its leader, Ramsay MacDonald, stayed on to form a National government supported mainly by Conservatives and Liberals. Within six weeks the decision to call an election was taken, and in the ensuing contest the Nationals won an overwhelming victory. Labour was left with a rump of 46 MPs, a decade in opposition, and an enduring sense of betrayal. Andrew Thorpe argues that, while 1931 changed much, the general trends towards Conservative hegemony and two-party politics were little disturbed by the crisis. He traces the background to the events of 1931, and examines their implications in detail. His scholarly analysis is the first full-length study of the election to benefit from unrestricted access to contemporary documents, and will be of value to all students of twentieth-century British politics.

Informed by and against the backdrop of the 2019 European Parliament (EP) elections, this innovative book provides a critical assessment of where Europe stands in terms of the quest to achieve democratic legitimacy. Since the 2014 EP elections, the European Union (EU) has experienced multiple crises, which arguably have undermined its legitimacy. The 2019 EP elections were hence seen as a crucial moment in the EU's attempts to show resilience and regain trust. Using political science and legal frames of analysis, Assessing the 2019 European Parliament Elections provides an understanding and assessment of the current politico-legal framework, and its impact on European elections. Furthermore, using original data, it provides a timely examination of public opinion issue priorities and voting behaviour at the 2019 EP elections in eight countries. Given the critical conjuncture that the 2019 EP elections represent, this volume provides a key contribution to understanding both the dynamics surrounding the elections, as well as voters' responses, and informs debates on European politics, for example, second-order elections, democratic legitimacy and political representation. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of EU politics, public administration, European studies, European law, and sociology, along with practitioners in politics, journalism, and policy analysis.

As religion and politics become ever more intertwined, relationships between religion and political parties are of increasing global political significance. This handbook responds to that development, providing important results of current research involving religion and politics, focusing on: democratisation, democracy, party platform formation, party moderation and secularisation, social constituency representation and interest articulation. Covering core issues, new debates, and country case studies, the handbook provides a comprehensive overview of fundamentals and new directions in the subject. Adopting a comparative approach, it examines the relationships between religion and political parties in a variety of contexts, regions and countries with a focus on Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism and Hinduism. Contributions cover such topics as: religion, secularisation and modernisation; religious fundamentalism and terrorism; the role of religion in conflict resolution and peacebuilding; religion and its connection to state, democratisation and democracy; and regional case studies covering Asia, the Americas, Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North Africa. This comprehensive handbook provides crucial information for students, researchers and professionals researching the topics of politics, religion, comparative politics, secularism, religious movements, political parties and interest groups, and religion and sociology.

This book provides an original, international and multidisciplinary perspective on the recent and extensive political and constitutional changes in Europe. The contributors cover changes from several key European countries, whether European Union members, applicant members, non-EU members or potentially former members, namely France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Spain, the Western Balkans and Switzerland. The volume offers a rare understanding of contemporary European societies by examining how people's choices as citizens and voters have influenced and can influence those changes and thus make a difference via elections and referendums. It will appeal to students and scholars of European studies, comparative politics, and voting behaviour, as well as to the wider readership interested in current affairs and European issues.

From the moment Donald Trump announced his candidacy for the White House until very late on Election Night 2016, media and pollsters kept insisting Trump wouldn't - COULDN'T - be president.

But for Larry Schweikart (one of a ragtag group of amateur politicos called "the Deplorables" who had been publishing shockingly accurate polls and predictions) and Joel Pollak (a Breitbart News senior editor following Trump on the campaign trail) Trump's win was a near certainty. Schweikart and Pollak watched the Trump campaign build a powerful coalition between working-class Americans from both parties; they saw the momentum that the mainstream media and pollsters completely missed; and now, in How Trump Won, they tell the whole incredible story: from the early poll predictions of "the Deplorables" to the campaign trail to Election Night.

This book documents the history of China's attempts to undermine Taiwan's elections, offering additional insights into China's methods of influence in Hong Kong, the United States and Canada. Drawing from Chinese language primary sources and historical accounts, Taiwan is presented as a growing democracy that has had to endure constant threats to its way of democratic life from the People's Republic of China (China). Examining China's election interference operations and several previously undocumented instances of Chinese interference, chapters in this book not only cover traditional methods of influence such as diplomacy, economic policy, and military intimidation, but also an array of novel practices involving organized crime, religion, and the media. Conceptual and practical ideas have been developed for studying and combatting election interference, which will particularly appeal to policy makers and security professionals seeking to better identify instances of ongoing election interference and the motivations driving this phenomenon. Chinese Election Interference in Taiwan's National Elections will prove an innovative resource to students and scholars of international relations and Chinese studies, including history and politics.

Since the end of the Cold War there have been a number of cases where the democratization process has been turbulent, or even violent. Addressing electoral violence, its evolution and impact in the Western Balkans, this book explores the conflict logic of election and tries to understand its basic patterns. Two decades of electoral competition in the region are analysed to identify an interesting evolution of electoral violence in terms of forms, actors, motivations and dynamics. By identifying the potential drivers of electoral violence and explaining the escalation and stimulus of violence-related events, the author combines a theoretical approach with original data to emphasise the variability of the phenomenon and its evolution in the region. The book will appeal to students and scholars of post-communist Europe and democratisation processes and the Western Balkans in particular. It should also be of interest to political advisors and those involved in developing or implementing democratisation programmes.

This book places the 2012 election in Florida in historical context and provides an explanation for the outcome of the races involved. The book offers descriptions of the races for President, US Senate, US Congress and the Florida State Legislature as well as explanations for the outcomes of these races. The description and analysis uses empirical data on voter registration, voter turnout, and exit polls taken by major national news organizations. Voting behavior in the presidential race in Florida is compared to that in other states.

This major new account of the politics of modern Ireland offers a rigorous analysis of the forces which shaped both how the Irish state governed itself from the period since 1987 and how it lost its economic sovereignty in 2010. This study comprehensively assess the last quarter century in Irish electoral politics from the time of the end of a deep recession in 1987 to the general election of 2011 where Ireland was ruled by the Troika and austerity was a by-word for both policy-making and how many Irish people lived their lives. It analyses why the political system in Ireland was unable to stop the country losing its economic sovereignty and why the Irish electorate kept returning to political alternatives which they had rejected in the past. Written in a lively and engaging style it offers rich insights into the politics of modern Ireland and how Irish citizens have lived through a period combining triumphant euphoria and deep despair. -- .

Until recently, historians believed America gave asylum only to key Nazi scientists after World War II, along with some less famous perpetrators who managed to sneak in and who eventually were exposed by Nazi hunters. But the truth is much worse, and has been covered up for decades: the CIA and FBI brought thousands of perpetrators to America as possible assets against their new Cold War enemies. When the Justice Department finally investigated and learned the truth, the results were classified and buried. Using the dramatic story of one former perpetrator who settled in New Jersey, conned the CIA into hiring him, and begged for the agency's support when his wartime identity emerged, Eric Lichtblau tells the full, shocking story of how America became a refuge for hundreds of postwar Nazis.

1) This is a data rich comprehensive volume on elections in India from 1952-2019. 2) It discusses important facets of institutions and voting analysis in both regional and national elections. 3) This book will be of interest to departments of South Asian studies and India studies across UK and USA.

The research in this book will be of interest to scholars of Congress and campaigns & elections. It follows in a distinguished line of work on candidate emergence and adds new data of interest, and provides in-depth treatment of a central but specialized topic in the congressional elections literature. The book could also find some adoption as a supplementary text for upper-division undergraduate and graduate courses in elections, although the reviews support the book primarily as a research monograph. Measuring and assessing candidate quality is a challenging feat to accomplish, and the author has undertaken to do this in a fresh and compelling way. To quote from Review E, "This book is by far the best effort I have seen at quantifying CQ, its impact on electoral outcomes, and fluctuations and trends in its incidence." Author is an important and respected scholar of elections in the United States, co-author of Routledge's A Citizen's Guide to U.S. Elections (2015) and editor of Strategy, Money and Technology in the 2008 Presidential Election (Routledge 2011).

Continuing a R&L tradition now entering its fourth decade, this book provides the most comprehensive and authoritative account of the national 2020 election, including the presidential nomination process and general election, and congressional and state elections. Andrew E. Busch and John J. Pitney Jr. revisit the campaigns and results through the short lens of politics today and the long lens of American political history. With its keen insights into the issues and events that drove the 2020 elections, Divided We Stand: The 2020 Elections and American Politics will be an invaluable resource for students and all political observers seeking to understand a historic election that will continue to resonate throughout American politics for many years to come.

Continuing a R&L tradition now entering its fourth decade, this book provides the most comprehensive and authoritative account of the national 2020 election, including the presidential nomination process and general election, and congressional and state elections. Andrew E. Busch and John J. Pitney Jr. revisit the campaigns and results through the short lens of politics today and the long lens of American political history. With its keen insights into the issues and events that drove the 2020 elections, Divided We Stand: The 2020 Elections and American Politics will be an invaluable resource for students and all political observers seeking to understand a historic election that will continue to resonate throughout American politics for many years to come.

What explains variance in presidential power between countries? In Presidential Power in Latin America, Dan Berbecel provides a general, systematic theory for explaining presidential power in practice as opposed to presidential power in theory. Using expert survey data from Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) alongside interviews with high-level figures in politics, the judiciary, the public administration, NGOs, and academia in Argentina and Chile, Berbecel argues that constitutional presidential power (formal power) is a very poor predictor of presidential power in practice (informal power). Given the poor predictive value of formal rules, he provides an explanation why hyperpresidentialism emerges in some countries but not in others. Berbecel attributes the root causes of hyperpresidentialism to three independent variables (the strength of state institutions, the size of the president's party in congress, and whether or not the country has a history of economic crises) which together determine how likely it is that a president will be able to concentrate power. Presidential Power in Latin America will be of key interest to scholars and students of executive politics, Latin American politics, and more broadly, comparative politics.

Elections in America provides a thorough and objective explanation of American elections at the local, state, and national levels. It discusses laws and practices that govern elections, the history of elections and voting rights, and contemporary voting controversies. Elections in America is an all-in-one resource for understanding the many facets of elections and voting trends since the United States came into being. It explains how, when, and why the franchise expanded in fits and starts after America's founding and the various controversies over voting rights and vote counting that swirl around elections today. It reviews the major landmark court decisions that have impacted electoral politics, discusses how America's two-party system has shaped elections, and provides information on major organizations, groups, and people battling over voting rights and election laws. In addition, this resource provides a suite of original essays from election scholars on different aspects of U.S. electoral politics, as well as a carefully curated selection of primary documents illuminating important developments in American election history. The book also contains a comprehensive annotated list of academic resources to guide the reader towards further research on topics of interest. Provides clear overviews of how local, state, and federal elections work in the United States Includes coverage of present-day voting controversies and challenges related to voting rights, voter fraud, and election results Details important laws and court decisions that have expanded or reduced access to the ballot box in American history Presents a range of perspectives on voting issues, practices, and laws

Up close, Inauguration Day 2021 looked like any other-the chief justice of the US Supreme Court administering the oath of office to the new president on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. But pull the lens back and this was anything but a typical election and transition of power. In A Return to Normalcy?, Larry Sabato, Kyle Kondik, and J. Miles Coleman bring together respected journalists, analysts, and scholars to examine every facet of the stunning 2020 election and its aftermath, and how these events will impact American politics moving forward. In frank, accessible prose, each author offers insight that goes beyond the headlines and dives into the underlying forces and shifts that drove the election from its earliest developments to its chaotic conclusion. A Return to Normalcy? will be an indispensable read for political junkies and all students of American politics.