About the Book
Elections in America provides a thorough and objective explanation of American elections at the local, state, and national levels. It discusses laws and practices that govern elections, the history of elections and voting rights, and contemporary voting controversies.
Elections in America is an all-in-one resource for understanding the many facets of elections and voting trends since the United States came into being. It explains how, when, and why the franchise expanded in fits and starts after America's founding and the various controversies over voting rights and vote counting that swirl around elections today. It reviews the major landmark court decisions that have impacted electoral politics, discusses how America's two-party system has shaped elections, and provides information on major organizations, groups, and people battling over voting rights and election laws.
In addition, this resource provides a suite of original essays from election scholars on different aspects of U.S. electoral politics, as well as a carefully curated selection of primary documents illuminating important developments in American election history. The book also contains a comprehensive annotated list of academic resources to guide the reader towards further research on topics of interest.
Table of Contents:
Preface,
1 Background and History,
Introduction: Determinants of the Great Diversity of U.S. Elections,
Elections,
Constitutional Provisions Regarding Elections in America,
Elections at the National Level,
Origins of the Two-Party System,
Competing to Replace the Whigs,
From Reconstruction to the Progressive Era,
Great Depression Ushers in New Political Era,
Voting Reforms amid Political Change,
Elections at the State Level,
State Governorships,
Elections at the Local Level,
Expansion of the Franchise by Law, Practice, and Court Decisions,
Expansion of the Franchise in America's First 100 Years,
Triumphs and Setbacks in Voting Rights since the Civil War,
Types of Elections,
Waning Parties and Rising Interest Groups in American Elections,
Bibliography,
2 Problems, Controversies, and Solutions,
Introduction,
Who Gets to Vote?,
Hyperpartisan Tribalism,
Gerrymandering of Electoral Districts,
Campaign Costs and Election Finance Reform,
Recruitment of Candidates,
Facets of Political Culture,
Political Participation and Religion,
New Political Culture,
Media and Elections,
Politically Motivated News Source Preferences and Beliefs,
Interest Groups and Elections,
The Impact of Federalism,
The Mechanics of Elections,
Bibliography,
3 Perspectives,
Introduction,
Equality and Constitutional Electoral Reform: Problems and Prospects,
Ken Bedell
Is Colorado a One-Party State?,
Tom Cronin and Bob Loevy
Thoughts on the 2020 Election,
Sara Hagedorn
Colorado's Election System: A National Model,
Beth Hendrix
Voter Suppression and the Exclusion of American Citizenship,
Adam Le
The Kornacki Effect: Vote Count Framing in a Pandemic Year,
Kimberly Nalder
Social Justice Protests and the 2020 Presidential Election,
August H. Nimtz
Indigenous Voters Helped Swing the 2020 Election,
Anna V. Smith
Latinx Voting Behavior: Key Insights from Recent Presidential Elections,
José D. Villalobos
4 Profiles,
Introduction,
Organizations,
ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union),
ActBlue,
AFL-CIO Workers' Voices PAC,
American Bridge 21st Century,
Americans for Prosperity,
American Heritage Society,
Brennan Center for Justice,
Center for American Progress (CAP),
Club for Growth,
Constitution Center,
Democratic National Committee (DNC),
Emily's List,
Federalist Society (FS),
Federal Election Commission (FEC),
Green Party of the United States (GPUS),
League of Women Voters (LWV),
Lincoln Project,
Make America Great Again (MAGA) PAC/Save America PAC,
NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People),
National Conference of State Legislatures,
National Democratic Redistricting Committee,
National Rifle Association (NRA),
Pew Research Center,
Priorities USA,
Republican National Committee (RNC),
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ),
U.S. Elections Assistance Commission (EAC),
WinRed,
People,
Becker, David,
Bush, George W.,
Clarke, Kristen,
Elazar, Daniel,
Feingold, Russ,
Harrison, Jaime,
Hill, Erin,
Holder, Eric,
Koch, David,
Limbaugh, Rush,
McCain, John,
McDaniel, Ronna,
Nader, Ralph,
Obama, Barack,
Reagan, Ronald,
Rehnquist, William,
Richards, Cecile,
Roberts, John,
Roosevelt, Franklin D.,
Sanders, Bernie,
Schumer, Charles,
Stein, Jill,
Trump, Donald,
Turner, Deborah Ann,
Van Buren, Martin,
Warren, Earl,
Bibliography,
5 Data and Documents,
Introduction,
Data,
Table 5.1: States Ranked by Date of Entrance to the Union,
Table 5.2: State Election Officials by State,
Table 5.3: States with Multiple Election Officials,
Table 5.4: Types of Primary Elections Used in the American States,
Table 5.5: Political Party Percentage from 2020 Exit Polls (ABC News),
Table 5.6: Six U.S. Supreme Court Cases Involving the 10th and 14th Amendments,
Table 5.7: Major Civil Rights Acts Passed by the U.S. Congress, 1866–1993,
Table 5.8: Exemplary Powerful Super PACs,
Table 5.9: The Cost of U.S. Elections, 1998–2020,
Table 5.10: Supreme Court Cases Impacting Gerrymandering,
Table 5.11: Campaign Finance Laws and Supreme Court Decisions Timeline,
Table 5.12: States Ranked by Percent VEP Turnout Rate, 2020 U.S. Election,
Table 5.13: States Ranked by the Cook Partisan Voting Index (CPVI), 2020,
Table 5.14: Electoral College Vote (ECV) by State, 2020,
Table 5.15: Party Identification, Annual Averages, 2010–2020,
Table 5.16: Most Popular News Platforms for Government and Politics, November 2020,
Documents,
Acts of Congress,
Doc. 5.1: Census Clause of the U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 2, Clause 3,
Doc. 5.2: The Hatch Act,
Doc. 5.3: The McCarran-Walter Act,
Doc. 5.4: The Voting Rights Act of 1965,
Doc. 5.5: The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971,
Doc. 5.6: The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002,
Supreme Court Decisions,
Doc. 5.7: Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 1964,
Doc. 5.8: Excerpts of the Case Summary in Bush v. Gore, 2000,
Doc. 5.9: FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc., 2007,
Doc. 5.10: Citizens United v. FEC, 2010,
Doc. 5.11: McCutcheon v. FEC, 2014,
Doc. 5.12: Rucho v. Common Cause, 2019, Justice Kagan's Dissenting Opinion,
6 Resources,
Introduction,
Books,
Leading Scholarly Journals,
Websites,
Documentaries,
7 Chronology,
Glossary,
Index,
About the Author :
Michael C. LeMay, PhD, is professor emeritus of political science at California State University, San Bernardino.
