Election campaigns in small and mid-sized electoral districts have been run from the grassroots from the beginning of the republic. Yard signs, door-to-door canvassing, and soap-box oratory have characterized state and local elections for years, and many predict their persistence into the 21st century. This book looks at trends in small town politics, tracking the infiltration of sophisticated communications technology, the use of political consultants, and the increase in fundraising and campaign expenditures. Original surveys, interviews, and in-depth case studies lead the author to...

What makes young aspiring politicians take the leap and enter the electoral arena? Born to Run tells the stories of nine young politicians from all walks of life who enter races at the state and local levels in Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Georgia, Nebraska, and Maine. Across the board, Gaddie finds a great range of motivations, strategies, and success rates among his carefully selected group. He doesn't rely strictly on interviews (although they provide lots of colorful detail), but hit the campaign trail along with his subjects to observe firsthand the pressures and challenges with which a new...

Negative campaigning is frequently denounced, but it is not well understood. Who conducts negative campaigns? Do they work? What is their effect on voter turnout and attitudes toward government? Just in time for an assessment of election 2004, two distinguished political scientists bring us a sophisticated analysis of negative campaigns for the Senate from 1992 to 2002. The results of their study are surprising and challenge conventional wisdom: negative campaigning has dominated relatively few elections over the past dozen years, there is little evidence that it has had a deleterious effect...

These groundbreaking studies, rich with data, include chapters on: -Political parties (by Anthony Corrado, Robin Kolodny, Diana Dwyre, Raymond LaRaja) -"527" committees and interest groups (by Steve Weissman, Ruth Hassan, Robert Boatright, Michael Malbin, Mark Rozell, Clyde Wilcox) -Television ads (by Kenneth Goldstein, Michael Franz, Joel Rivlin) -The "ground war" (by David Magleby, Kelly Patterson) -Congressional politics (by Gary Jacobson, Jennifer Steen) -Presidential campaigns (by Michael Malbin). A must read for its insightful and nuanced assessments of the effects of reform.

These groundbreaking studies, rich with data, include chapters on: _

Fountain of Youth examines the tactics and the strategies for youth mobilization. While the central focus of the book is on the role of local political parties in registering and getting young voters to the polls, the editors and contributors examine a broad range of possible_and long-term_solutions.

The withdrawal of young Americans from electoral politics has been as startling as it has been mystifying. Possible explanations for this phenomenon have focused on increased levels of cynicism and distrust among young voters, the behavior of candidates and campaign consultants, and the importance of institutional barriers to voting. Then came the 2004 election, when nearly 47 percent of eligible 18-to-24-year-olds turned out to vote--an 11 percent increase over 2000 levels. In the wake of this surprising development, Fountain of Youth looks at the tactics and strategies for youth...

This book analyzes the different roles that interest groups play in congressional elections, with supporting material from interviews with Washington insiders.

Political parties, interest groups, and candidate campaigns all pursue similar goals in presidential elections: each entity attempts to mobilize voters. However, the regulatory environment often prevents these groups from coordinating their efforts. With participants playing by new rules mandated by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, the 2004 presidential election included previously unseen configurations and alliances between political actors. In some campaign situations, the resulting "dance" was carefully choreographed. In others, dancers stepped on each other's toes. In still others,...

Political parties, interest groups, and candidate campaigns all pursue similar goals in presidential elections: each entity attempts to mobilize voters. However, the regulatory environment often prevents these groups from coordinating their efforts. With participants playing by new rules mandated by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, the 2004 presidential election included previously unseen configurations and alliances between political actors. In some campaign situations, the resulting 'dance' was carefully choreographed. In others, dancers stepped on each other's toes. In still others,...