During the Iranian Constitutional Revolution of 1906 to 1911 a variety of forces played key roles in overthrowing a repressive regime. Afary sheds new light on the role of ordinary citizens and peasantry, the status of Iranian women, and the multifaceted structure of Iranian society.

What would an Anti-Federalist Constitution look like? Because we view the Constitution through the lens of the Federalists who came to control the narrative, we tend to forget those who opposed its ratification. And yet the Anti-Federalist arguments, so critical to an understanding of the Constitution's origins and meaning, resonate throughout American history. By reconstructing these arguments and tracing their development through the ratification debates, Michael J. Faber presents an alternative perspective on constitutional history. Telling, in a sense, the other side of the story of the Constitution, his book offers key insights into the ideas that helped to form the nation's founding document and that continue to inform American politics and public life.Faber identifies three distinct strands of political thought that eventually came together in a clear and coherent Anti-Federalism position: (1) the individual and the potential for governmental tyranny; (2) power, specifically the states as defenders of the people; and (3) democratic principles and popular sovereignty. After clarifying and elaborating these separate strands of thought and analyzing a well-known proponent of each, Faber goes on to tell the story of the resistance to the Constitution, focusing on ideas but also following and explaining events and strategies. Finally, he produces a "counterfactual" Anti-Federalist Constitution, summing up the Anti-Federalist position as it might have emerged had the opposition drafted the document. How would such a constitution have worked in practice? A close consideration reveals the legacy of the Anti-Federalists in early American history, in the US Constitution and its role in the nation's political life.

How do advocates for the poor gain influence in American policymaking? Strange Bedfellows argues that groups representing low-income populations compensate for a lack of resources by collaborating with diverse partners in their lobbying efforts. This study develops a theory of coalition influence that explains the mechanisms and conditions of coalition formation and influence, and provides support for the theory through an analysis of one of the most significant social policy changes in recent history. The analysis shows that in the years preceding the federal welfare reform of 1996, advocates collaborated with diverse partners to influence policymaking, coalitions were used as a tool for pooling different types of resources and communicating information, and groups collaborated selectively across issues. Through rigorous theory and rich qualitative analysis, Strange Bedfellows sheds new light on lobbying and influence in policymaking while offering a theoretical framework for understanding the broader role of coalitions in American politics.

From spray-painted slogans in Senegal to student uprisings in South Africa, twenty-first century Africa has seen an explosion of protests and social movements. But why? Protests flourish amidst an emerging middle class whose members desire political influence and possess the money, education, and political autonomy to effectively launch movements for democratic renewal. In contrast with pro-democracy protest leaders, rank-and-file protesters live at a subsistence level and are motivated by material concerns over any grievance against a ruling regime. Through extensive field research, Lisa Mueller shows that middle-class political grievances help explain the timing of protests, while lower-class material grievances explain the participation. By adapting a class-based analysis to African cases where class is often assumed to be irrelevant, Lisa Mueller provides a rigorous yet accessible explanation for why sub-Saharan Africa erupted in unrest at a time of apparent economic prosperity.

For a brief time in her life Mrs. Rosaline McCheyne became one of the heroines of the East London Federation of Suffragettes. "The Splendid Mrs. McCheyne" tells the story of her involvement in the women's suffrage movement and what she did in the years which followed. Drawing on the papers of Sylvia Pankhurst, an extensive interview with Rosaline's descendant, Anne Padfield, and her own research into the history of East London, Jane McChrystal presents us with a portrait of a woman caught up in momentous events, who could all too easily have disappeared without a trace. "The Splendid Mrs. McCheyne" describes some of the key social and political changes which formed the backdrop to Rosaline's life during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, whose legacy lives on to this day. It includes a collection of articles about Rosaline's life and work, showing family historians how potentially dry and dusty research material can be turned into a lively and engaging read. The Splendid Mrs. McCheyne will appeal to readers with an interest in the history of the suffragettes and the east End of London in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

In the wake of the Arab uprisings, al-Nahda voted to transform itself into a political party that would for the first time withdraw from a preaching project built around religious, social, and cultural activism. This turn to the political was not a Tunisian exception but reflects an urgent debate within Islamist movements as they struggle to adjust to a rapidly changing political environment. This book re-orientates how we think about Islamist movements. Drawing on extensive fieldwork with grassroots activists of Tunisia's al-Nahda, Rory McCarthy focuses on the lived experience of activism to offer a challenging new perspective on one of the Middle East's most successful Islamist projects. Original evidence explains how al-Nahda survived two decades of brutal repression in prison and in social exclusion, and reveals what price the movement paid for a new strategy of pragmatism and reform during the Tunisian transition away from authoritarianism.

Over the past forty years, conservatives have mastered the art of pursuing policy change across the states, while similar liberal efforts have floundered. Using a diverse array of original evidence, including interviews, previously-unexamined archival records, and new surveys, State Capture explains why and how conservatives developed cross-state political clout while progressives did not. The book also carefully documents the implications of conservative cross-state network-building for American democracy, spelling out its consequences for political inequality and representation, as well as for our understanding of the relationship between private-sector businesses, political activists, and wealthy donors. In State Capture, Alexander Hertel-Fernandez details the development of a trio of conservative groups operating within and outside of state legislatures responsible for the right's success in the states. This right-leaning "troika" includes the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which brings together state legislators, conservative activists, and businesses to draft model legislation for the states; the free-market think-tanks operating as part of the State Policy Network (SPN), which together offer research and commentary in support of the policies ALEC develops; and Americans for Prosperity (AFP), a federated grassroots advocacy group with millions of volunteers and a hefty campaign warchest dedicated to pressing state governments to adopt conservative legislation, including ALEC model bills. Following the histories of each group across their victories but also their missteps, the book sheds light on broader themes in American political development and helps us to better understand longstanding issues about how businesses shape policy and politics. A timely and accessible book that tackles important long-term shifts in American politics, State Capture is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the intersection between private power and democracy.

Do small but wealthy interest groups influence referendums, ballot initiatives, and other forms of direct legislation at the expense of the broader public interest? Many observers argue that they do, often lamenting that direct legislation has, paradoxically, been captured by the very same wealthy interests whose power it was designed to curb. Elisabeth Gerber, however, challenges that argument. In this first systematic study of how money and interest group power actually affect direct legislation, she reveals that big spending does not necessarily mean big influence.

Gerber bases her findings on extensive surveys of the activities and motivations of interest groups and on close examination of campaign finance records from 168 direct legislation campaigns in eight states. Her research confirms what such wealthy interests as the insurance industry, trial lawyer associations, and tobacco companies have learned by defeats at the ballot box: if citizens do not like a proposed new law, even an expensive, high-profile campaign will not make them change their mind. She demonstrates, however, that these economic interest groups have considerable success in using direct legislation to block initiatives that others are proposing and to exert pressure on politicians. By contrast, citizen interest groups with broad-based support and significant organizational resources have proven to be extremely effective in using direct legislation to pass new laws. Clearly written and argued, this is a major theoretical and empirical contribution to our understanding of the role of citizens and organized interests in the American legislative process.