• The only book on the market combining academic with practitioner perspectives on the management of political campaigns, thus enriching both professional and student understanding of the issues confronting the industry. • Views the COVID-19 pandemic as an innovator as well as a disrupter, showing impacts on campaign management as agents of both change and continuity. • Focuses on media—new, traditional, social—and their role in the changing landscape of political campaigns. Highlights of the Sixth Edition Covers the 2020 and 2022 elections with an eye to 2024. Examines changes to the campaign process as a result of COVID-19 and puts them in context with campaign traditions over time. Includes a new organization that moves campaign finance up front to emphasize the centrality of fundraising to successful campaigns. Offers more data to inform campaign planning and management, especially related to key topics such as the change in news media coverage, the growth and use of social media, the use of "big data" in campaigns, and changes in field and voting rules and policies.

• The only book on the market combining academic with practitioner perspectives on the management of political campaigns, thus enriching both professional and student understanding of the issues confronting the industry. • Views the COVID-19 pandemic as an innovator as well as a disrupter, showing impacts on campaign management as agents of both change and continuity. • Focuses on media—new, traditional, social—and their role in the changing landscape of political campaigns. Highlights of the Sixth Edition Covers the 2020 and 2022 elections with an eye to 2024. Examines changes to the campaign process as a result of COVID-19 and puts them in context with campaign traditions over time. Includes a new organization that moves campaign finance up front to emphasize the centrality of fundraising to successful campaigns. Offers more data to inform campaign planning and management, especially related to key topics such as the change in news media coverage, the growth and use of social media, the use of "big data" in campaigns, and changes in field and voting rules and policies.

In the forty-year span between 1968 and 2008, the United States underwent great change in nearly every avenue of life -economics, social mores, demographics, technology, and, of course, politics. The way Americans chose Richard Nixon as their president was very different from the way they chose Barack Obama. The process of selecting Obama was more open and inclusive in a number of ways. In Grant Park , Candice J. Nelson examines the democratization of the presidential election process over four turbulent decades. Nelson examines her topic through the metaphor of Chicago's famous Grant Park. During the tumultuous Democratic Party convention of 1968, thousands of young people and African Americans rioted in Grant Park after being excluded from the nomination process. In 2008, on the other hand, thousands again jammed the park, but this time they were celebrating the convincing victory of their first African American president. A lot had to happen in American politics during that forty-year period before Obama could emerge victoriously from the Windy City. In Grant Park, Nelson explains how changes in technology, finance laws, party rules, political institutions, and the electorate itself produced the stunning turnaround, and how presidential selection might change again heading toward November 2012 and beyond. "The presidential election of 2012 will bear little resemblance to the 1968 election. Americans will have more opportunities to participate in the election, and the electorate will be more diverse. While the campaign finance system continues to challenge the democratization of presidential elections, the overall picture of presidential elections is one much more democratic than demonstrators faced in Grant Park in the summer of 1968." -From Grant Park

It was the best of elections; it was the worst of elections. The 2004 presidential contest mobilized a record number of voters, with 121 million Americans showing up at the polls. But in many eyes, the 2004 race also plumbed new depths. It was the most expensive presidential election in history, with a price tag of $2.2 billion. It was also marked by unprecedented negativity -for example, both George W. Bush and John Kerry came under fire for their activities during the Vietnam War, which ended three decades ago. In Vital Signs, David Dulio and Candice Nelson analyze the Bush and Kerry campaigns and use them as the springboard for a broader exploration of the current U.S. campaign system and its strengths and weaknesses. The book addresses four key issues: Who's in charge of modern campaigns? How effective are the key players? What role does money play? And are campaigns being conducted in an ethical manner? In answering these questions, Dulio and Nelson draw on a wide range of sources, including focus groups, interviews with campaign professionals, and a unique dataset based on multiple surveys of political consultants, party operatives, and the public. The culmination of the seven-year "Improving Campaign Conduct" project, Vital Signs should become an integral part of the debate about American campaigns and elections.

Over the past four decades, the share of income devoted to health care nearly tripled. If policy is unchanged, this trend is likely to continue. Should Americans decide to rein in the growth of health care spending, they will be forced to consider whether to ration care for the well-insured, a prospect that is odious and unthinkable to many. This book argues that sensible health care rationing can not only save money but improve general welfare and public health. It reviews the experience with health care rationing in Great Britain. The choices the British have made point up the nature of the options Americans will face if they wish to keep public health care budgets from driving taxes ever higher and private health care spending from crowding out increases in other forms of worker compensation and consumption. This book explains why serious consideration of health care rationing is inescapable. It also provides the information policymakers and concerned citizens need to think clearly about these difficult issues and engage in an informed debate.

"To many, the term ""campaign ethics"" is an oxymoron. Questionable campaign conduct occurs at many levels, from national presidential elections to local delegate contests. Campaign ethics goes beyond mere ""ethical dilemmas,"" or trying to decide whether or not a particular act is above board. The chapters in this volume examine the broad questions of ethics in campaigns from the perspective of those actors that play critical roles in them, as well as the scholars who study them. The contributors-who include leading academics, as well as practitioners from the world of campaigning and campaign reform-outline, assess, and critique the role and responsibilities of candidates, citizens, organized interest groups, political parties, professional campaign consultants, and the media, in insuring ethical campaigns. Contributors include: Robert E. Denton (Virginia Tech University), David A. Dulio (Oakland University), Brad Rourke (Institute for Global Ethics), Robin Kolodny (Temple University), L. Dale Lawton (Institute for Global Ethics), L. Sandy Maisel (Colby College), Larry Makinson (Center for Responsive Politics), Stephen K. Medvic (Franklin & Marshall College), Dale E. Miller (Old Dominion University), Candice J. Nelson (Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University), Mark A. Siegel (Office of Congressman Steve Israel), Paul Taylor (Alliance For Better Campaigns), James A. Thurber (Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University), Michael W. Traugott (University of Michigan), Carol Whitney (Whitney and Associatesand Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University), and William H. Wood (Sorenson Institute for Political Leadership, University of Virginia). "

Campaign politics has become increasingly professionalized in recent years. The growing prevalence and influence of paid consultants in the United States and other democracies is one of the most important factors changing the nature of electoral politics. Campaign Warriors thoroughly examines this critical --and controversial --development and its impact on the political system in the U.S. and other countries.

The contributors approach the topic from several different perspectives, including the increasing use of "spin doctors" and the resulting loss of influence of state and national political parties. The book investigates the role of these paid advisers: who they are, what they do and why, and how they feel about their work. The contributors discuss the consultant's relationship with candidates and parties, and analyze the effect of their efforts on election outcome.

"Is U.S. party identification unraveling? No, these authors convincingly argue, using a wealth of evidence. So-called independent leaners, a growth stock among voters in recent times, think and act rather like straight partisans. Also, the "dealigning" thrust that we head so much about in the 1970s seems to have come and gone."--David Mayhew, Yale University

"Party politics is alive and well in America! A surprising conclusion given the Republican dominance of the presidency and the Democrats' lock on Congress."--Warren Mitofsky, Executive Director of Voter Research and Surveys

"Few pieces of conventional wisdom about politics have resonated as much among scholars, pundits, and politicians as the one that there is a large and growing army of independent voters threatening the stability of the two party system. "The Myth of the Independent Voter systematically demolishes that c.w., in a lively but scholarly way. One can only hope that this book is express-mailed to every political commentator before they start the deluge of pontification about 1992."--Norman J. Ornstein, American Enterprise Institute

"Very few books absolutely require to be read. This is one of them. Every scholar studying American voting and elections from now on will have to come to terms with "The Myth of the Independent Voter. If the authors are right (and they almost certainly are), an embarrassingly large proportion of the received wisdom of the 1970s and 1980s is going to have to be junked."--Anthony King, University of Essex

"Few developments in the politics of the last quarter century have been more remarked upon than the great increase in the numbers of voters who call themselves independents. Foranyone seriously interested in assessing the meaning of that development, this is the book to read. Where others have jumped to conclusions, the authors ground theirs in an admirably clear and orderly marshalling of evidence. The result is a piece of research that clears the head of misconceptions about contemporary party politics and clears the way for realistic analyses of it."--Stanley Kelley, Jr., Princeton University

"A wonderfully provocative book. Its critical analyses scorch scores of generalizations about partisanship in the American electorate. Not everyone will be completely persuaded by the arguments made in this book, but no one will be able to ignore them."--Morris P. Fiorina, Harvard University

The amount of money needed to run a competitive congressional campaign is staggering, with special interests playing a central role in raising these funds. Also of concern is the declining competitiveness of House elections. And while recognition of the need to reform campaign financing is widespread, partisan and House/Senate differences over what these changes should be have complicated legislative efforts.

Almost $450 million was spent in both the 1986 and 1988 congressional campaigns, much of it coming from wealthy contributors and political action committees (PACs). Increasing criticism of the current system will undoubtedly force Congress to keep campaign finance reform on it's legislative agenda.

Using public opinion, election and campaign spending data, extensive interviews, and a knowledge of practical politics, Magleby and Nelson examine the central issues in the campaign financing debate: the cost of congressional campaigns, financial participation by the political parties and PACs, existing and proposed limits on contributions and expenditures, public financing, and the role of the Federal Election Commission. They propose a comprehensive package of reforms that will undoubtedly serve as a guide for future legislation.