US federalism grants state legislators the authority to design many aspects of election administration, including ballot features that mediate how citizens understand and engage with the choices available to them when casting their votes. Seemingly innocuous features in the physical design of ballots, such as the option to cast a straight ticket with a single checkmark, can have significant aggregate effects. Drawing on theoretical insights from behavioral economics and extensive data on state ballot laws from 1888 to the present, as well as in-depth case studies, this book shows how strategic politicians use ballot design to influence voting and elections, drawing comparisons across different periods in American history with varying levels of partisanship and contention. Engstrom and Roberts demonstrate the sweeping impact of ballot design on voting, elections, and democratic representation.

US federalism grants state legislators the authority to design many aspects of election administration, including ballot features that mediate how citizens understand and engage with the choices available to them when casting their votes. Seemingly innocuous features in the physical design of ballots, such as the option to cast a straight ticket with a single checkmark, can have significant aggregate effects. Drawing on theoretical insights from behavioral economics and extensive data on state ballot laws from 1888 to the present, as well as in-depth case studies, this book shows how strategic politicians use ballot design to influence voting and elections, drawing comparisons across different periods in American history with varying levels of partisanship and contention. Engstrom and Roberts demonstrate the sweeping impact of ballot design on voting, elections, and democratic representation.

The tenth edition of this respected textbook provides a fresh perspective and a crisp introduction to congressional politics. Informed by the authors' Capitol Hill experience and scholarship, the new edition reflects changes in Congress resulting from the 2018 elections and such developments as (a) a new majority party in the House; (b) new campaign spending numbers and election outcomes, rules, committees, leaders, and budget developments; and (c) recent political science literature that provides new perspectives on the institution. The text emphasizes the recent developments and includes important learning aids, including lists of key term, discussion questions and suggested further reading. Alongside clear explanations of congressional rules and the lawmaking process there are examples from contemporary events and debates that highlight Congress as a group of politicians as well as a lawmaking body.

The American Congress provides the most current treatment of congressional politics available in an undergraduate text. Informed by the authors' Capitol Hill experience and scholarship, this book presents a crisp introduction to major features of Congress: parties and committee systems, leadership, voting and floor activity. This text contains discussions of the importance of presidents, courts and interest groups in congressional policy making. Recent developments are also discussed within the context of congressional political history. The seventh edition includes complete coverage of the first Congress of the Obama presidency, the 2010 midterm elections, healthcare reform and an early perspective on the 112th Congress with a Republican majority.

The American Congress Reader provides a supplement to the popular and newly updated American Congress undergraduate textbook. By the same authors who drew upon Capitol Hill experience and nationally recognized scholarship to present a crisp introduction and analysis of Congress's inner mechanics, the Reader compiles the best relevant scholarship on party and committee systems, leadership, voting, and floor activity to broaden and illuminate the key features of the text.