The Divided Democrats: Ideological Unity, Party Reform, And Presidential Elections (Transforming American Politics) - Hardcover

Mayer, William G.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0813326796 ISBN 13: 9780813326795

Publisher: Routledge, 1996

Synopsis

Do Democrats have greater difficulty maintaining party unity than Republicans? William Mayer argues that they do, chiefly because the Democrats are a more ideologically diverse, less cohesive party. After extensively documenting the Democrats traditional problems of division and disagreement, Mayer presents evidence suggesting that the Republican advantage over the Democrats has finally started to narrowraising important questions about the future of the Republican coalition. }Why have the Democrats lost five of the last seven presidential elections, even though polls consistently show that more Americans identify with that party than with the Republican party? And why are Democratic presidential nomination races usually so much more bitter and fractious than those held by the Republicans?The answer, argues William Mayer, lies in an important but too often ignored feature of American politics: The Democrats are a more ideologically diverse, less cohesive party than the Republicans and thus have greater difficulty maintaining party unity. After extensively documenting the Democrats traditional problems of division and disagreement, Mayer presents evidence suggesting that in recent years the Republican advantage over the Democrats has finally started to narrowraising important questions about the future of the Republican coalition. }

About this title

About the Author

William G. Mayer is assistant professor of political science at Northeastern University.

Edition details

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0813326796
• ISBN 13: 9780813326795
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240