Citizen participation has developed into an ideology rather than a practical mechanism to promote participation by citizens and to improve local governance. This comprehensive publication substantiates the concept as a phenomenon in the discipline of public administration and development. The relevance of this book is enhanced by its content which forms an information base reaching beyond the traditional target group of academics and practitioners.

Finalist, 2021 Writers' League of Texas Book Award For John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner, there was one simple rule in politics: "You've got to bloody your knuckles." It's a maxim that applies in so many ways to the state of Texas, where the struggle for power has often unfolded through underhanded politicking, backroom dealings, and, quite literally, bloodshed. The contentious history of Texas politics has been shaped by dangerous and often violent events, and been formed not just in the halls of power but by marginalized voices omitted from the official narratives. A Single Star and Bloody Knuckles traces the state's conflicted and dramatic evolution over the past 150 years through its pivotal political players, including oft-neglected women and people of color. Beginning in 1870 with the birth of Texas's modern political framework, Bill Minutaglio chronicles Texas political life against the backdrop of industry, the economy, and race relations, recasting the narrative of influential Texans. With journalistic verve and candor, Minutaglio delivers a contemporary history of the determined men and women who fought for their particular visions of Texas and helped define the state as a potent force in national affairs.

This book examines how Africa can secure a 'just transition' to low-carbon, climate-resilient economies.

This new edition has been extensively updated to reflect developments in Georgia politics and government since 2007 - a decade that has seen three presidential election cycles, two midterm elections, and a census. Updates reflect not only changes in how Georgia is governed but also the economic and social trends helping to drive those changes. These include the continued growth and dispersal of Hispanic and Asian populations; the decline, by a variety of measures, of rural areas; and the moderating effect of probusiness government factions on social conservative agendas. This edition maintains the book's comparative approach, which examines the state from three revealing perspectives. This allows readers to determine the extent to which Georgia is similar to its peers on such topics as the length and features of the constitution, the organization of the state government, and the nature of policies. All this allows students and scholars to have a better understanding of the political and economic dynamics of Georgia and the relationship of those dynamics to national political and economic developments. The result is a thorough, up-to-date resource on Georgia's dynamic political system.

Sustainable and inclusive growth in emerging Asian economies requires high levels of public investment in areas such as infrastructure, education, health, and social services. The increasing complexity and regional diversity of these investment needs, together with the trend of democratization, has led to fiscal decentralization being implemented in many Asian economies. This book takes stock of some major issues regarding fiscal decentralization, including expenditure and revenue assignments, transfer programs, and the sustainability of local government finances, and develops important findings and policy recommendations. The book's expert contributors assess the current state of the allocation of expenditures and revenues between central and local governments in emerging Asian economies, and discuss their major strengths and weaknesses. They also present relevant case studies of experiences and reform measures related to strengthening and monitoring local government finance, including the implications of expanded fiscal capacity for infrastructure investment and other public spending. Covering the major Asian economies of the People's Republic of China, India, Indonesia, and Japan, among others, the book focuses on the economic incentives of transfer schemes, how intergovernmental fiscal equalization works, and how subnational government borrowing regulations could influence debt dynamics and the fiscal deficits of local governments. This book's insightful analysis will be essential reading for policymakers in Asian economies, and academics and researchers in the areas of economic development, public finance, and fiscal policy as well as development aid officials, multilateral banks, and NGOs. Contributors include: S. Barrios, S.-i. Bessho, P. Chakraborty, P. Das, Z. Fan, R.K. Goel, S. Li, D. Martinez-Lopez, J. Martinez-Vazquez, P.J. Morgan, A. Nasution, J.W. Saunoris, P. Smoke, L.Q. Trinh, V. Vulovic, G. Wan, N. Yoshino, Q. Zhang

This open access edited volume introduces the concept of causal mechanisms to explore new ways of explaining the global dynamics of social policy, and shows that a mechanism-based approach provides several advantages over established approaches for studying social policy. The introductory chapter outlines the mechanism-based approach, which stands out by modularisation and a clear focus on actors. The mechanism-based approach then guides the twelve chapters on social policy developments in different Asian, African, European and Latin American countries. Based on these findings, the concluding chapter provides a structured compilation of causal mechanisms and outlines how a mechanism-based approach can further strengthen research on the global development of social policies, especially in a comparative perspective. The edited volume is highly relevant for social policy scholars from a variety of disciplines, as well as for scholars interested in strengthening explanation in the social sciences.

Nearly one hundred thousand newly enfranchised blacks voted against race-baiting Eugene Talmadge in Georgia's 1946 Democratic primary. His opponent won the popular vote by a majority of sixteen thousand. Talmadge was elected anyway, thanks to the malapportioning county unit system, but died before he could be inaugurated, whereupon the General Assembly chose his son Herman to take his place. For the next sixty-three days, Georgia waited in shock for the state supreme court to decide whether Herman or the lieutenant governor-elect would be seated. What had happened to so suddenly reverse four years of progressive reform under retiring governor Ellis Arnall? To find out, Calvin Kytle and James A. Mackay sat through the tumultuous 1947 assembly, then toured Georgia's 159 counties asking politicians, public officials, editors, businessmen, farmers, factory workers, civic leaders, lobbyists, academicians, and preachers the question "Who runs Georgia?" Among those interviewed were editor Ralph McGill, novelist Lillian Smith, defeated gubernatorial candidate James V. Carmichael, powerbroker Roy Harris, pollwatcher Ira Butt, and more than a hundred others--men and women, black and white, heroes and rogues--of all stripes and stations. The result, as Dan T. Carter says in his foreword, captures "the substance and texture of political life in the American South" during an era that historians have heretofore neglected--those years of tension between the end of the New Deal and the explosive start of the civil rights movement. What's more, Who Runs Georgia? has much to tell us about campaign finance and the political influence of Big Money, as relevant for the nation today as it was then for the state.

This book is a unique contribution to the understanding of the reality of government and governance in the European Union (EU). It illustrates the EU's multi-level system and within it the activities of agenda setting, policy formulation and implementation which all involve co-operation between public administrations from the sub-national, national, supranational and international levels. The book portrays how co-operation amongst administrations in Europe has become the backbone of the EU's unique system of government and governance. Many forms of co-operation have led to a truly integrated administration, which has developed in an evolutionary fashion and operates in large parts beyond the formally constituted rules of the treaties. EU Administrative Governance unites studies analysing policy phases and the most important policy areas from all three pillars of the EU. It outlines some of the main challenges which arise from the close integration of national and European administrations and explores implications for accountability and legitimacy of Europe's increasingly integrated administration. This unique contribution to the contemporary understanding of structures underlying European government and the exercise of governance will be of great interest to scholars in the fields of administrative law, EU law and administrative sciences.

The democratic system is understood and accepted as the fairest form of government in Western countries. Nevertheless, citizens tend to critique their democratically elected rulers. Mathematical Approaches to Understanding Democracy: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential reference source that provides an analysis on the global political systems and provides insight on how to optimize government capabilities, citizen engagement, and educational systems. Using statistical concepts, it proposes algorithmic solutions to detect problems and provide improvement on democratic and non-democratic societies. Featuring research on topics such as political negligence, voter knowledge, political corruption, and democratic training, this book is ideally designed for governmental officials, policymakers, educators, statisticians, academicians, and researchers.