Congressional Elections, U.S. Politics & Government - 1945 - 1989, U.S. Politics & Government - 1945 to Present, U.S. Politics - Campaigns & Elections, The United States House of Representatives, Political Parties - United States

Cheap Seats

Name: Cheap Seats
Author: James E. Campbell
ISBN: 9780814207086

by James E. Campbell

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Overview

In Cheap Seats, James E. Campbell considers why the Democrats dominated House elections for four decades and why they ultimately lost that control. Examining the structural advantages that helped congressional Democrats, Campbell finds that their unprecedented success in the House was due in no small measure to a favorable election system, an advantage in the way in which votes are translated into House seats. His straightforward analysis indicates that Democrats have an electoral system advantage because they consistently win most of the very-low-turnout districts, or "cheap seats." In fact, because of the party's continued hold on such districts, the new Democratic minority is considerably larger than it would otherwise have been. Cheap Seats is a thorough and innovative investigation into the electoral system's impact on partisan politics and representation in Congress. Campbell presents an impressive array of evidence, including both quantitative analysis of election returns from 1936 to 1994 and in-depth studies of several cheap-seat districts. He also explores the important theoretical issues of representation that cheap seats raise and offers several proposals to reform the system.

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Campbell (political science, Louisiana State U.) considers the reasons why the Democrats dominated the House elections for four decades and why they lost control in 1994, examining structural advantages that helped congressional Democrats consistently win most of the very-low- turnout districts, or "cheap seats." He explores theoretical issues of representation that cheap seats raise, and offers proposals to change the system. For general readers as well as scholars. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.