The Direct Primary and the Incumbency Advantage in the US House of Representatives

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 483-506
Author(s):  
Michael P. Olson
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
The Us ◽  
Direct Primary

The Incumbency Advantage in the US Congress: A Roller-Coaster Relationship

Politics ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 220-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Stockemer ◽  
Rodrigo Praino
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
American Politics ◽  
Roller Coaster ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
Constant Increase ◽  
Us Congress ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Us ◽  
The 1960S

While every student in American politics knows that the incumbency advantage grew post-1965, it is less clear as to whether or not this growth has been sustainable throughout the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Focusing on the last three decades, we show that the electoral margins of sitting members of the House of Representatives have not linearly grown over the past 60 years. On the contrary, the constant increase in incumbents' vote shares between the 1960s and 1980s could not be sustained in the 1990s. In fact, in the 1990s, the incumbency advantage dropped sharply to levels experienced in the 1960s. In recent years, the electoral margin of sitting House members seems to have grown again to levels comparable to those in the 1970s.

Sectional Differences in Partisan Bias and Electoral Responsiveness in US House Elections, 1850–1980

1991 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
David W. Brady ◽  
Bernard Grofman
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Wall Street Journal ◽  
State Legislatures ◽  
Critical Importance ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
Wall Street ◽  
Partisan Bias ◽  
The Us ◽  
Electoral Change ◽  
Democratic Advantage

In this Note we challenge the claim asserted in a 1984 Wall Street Journal editorial that partisan gerrymandering by Democratic-controlled state legislatures is the principal reason for the inability of Republicans to translate their national share of votes proportionally into seats in the US House of Representatives. In contrast to previous work, we show the critical importance of sectional (South/non-South) differences for understanding the dynamics of electoral change at the congressional level. We argue that the inability of Republicans to translate votes effectively into congressional seats is largely a product of wasted Republican votes in the South, although we recognize that a handful of states (e.g., California) are significantly gerrymandered against Republicans, and we also recognize that part of the reason for the present-day Democratic advantage in the House is an incumbency advantage that benefits the party that controls most seats.

A Note on Close Elections and Regression Analysis of the Party Incumbency Advantage

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Peter M. Aronow ◽  
David R. Mayhew ◽  
Winston Lin
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Least Squares ◽  
Control Strategy ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Regression Discontinuity ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Regression Discontinuity Design ◽  
Least Squares Regression ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
The Us

AbstractMuch research has recently been devoted to understanding the effects of party incumbency following close elections, typically using a regression discontinuity design. Researchers have demonstrated that close elections in the US House of Representatives may systematically favor certain types of candidates, and that a research design that focuses on close elections may therefore be inappropriate for estimation of the incumbency advantage. We demonstrate that any issues raised with the study of close elections may be equally applicable to the ordinary least squares analysis of electoral data, even when the sample contains all elections. When vote share is included as part of a covariate control strategy, the estimate produced by an ordinary least squares regression that includes all elections either exactly reproduces or approximates the regression discontinuity estimate.

scholarly journals Constituency Service and Incumbency Advantage

1991 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary King
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Congressional Elections ◽  
State Legislators ◽  
Legislative Elections ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Us ◽  
Electoral Defeat ◽  
State Legislative Elections ◽  
State Legislative

Numerous scholars have documented a dramatic increase in incumbency advantage in US congressional elections and also state legislative elections over the past four decades. For example, Gelman and King show that incumbents in the House of Representatives now receive about twelve extra percentage points solely as a result of holding congressional office during the campaign; the comparable figure for most of the first half of this century was only 2 per cent. This advantage of incumbency has made members of the US House and many state legislators nearly invulnerable to electoral defeat.

Interaction of Ukrainian Diaspora and the USA Government Regarding Celebration of Ukrainian Independence Day on January 22

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (47) ◽  
pp. 136-145
Author(s):  
Halyna Shchyhelska
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
The United States ◽  
100Th Anniversary ◽  
Totalitarian Regime ◽  
The Public ◽  
Us Congress ◽  
The Us ◽  
Public Consciousness ◽  
The Usa

2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the proclamation of Ukrainian independence. OnJanuary 22, 1918, the Ukrainian People’s Republic proclaimed its independence by adopting the IV Universal of the Ukrainian Central Rada, although this significant event was «wiped out» from the public consciousness on the territory of Ukraine during the years of the Soviet totalitarian regime. At the same time, January 22 was a crucial event for the Ukrainian diaspora in the USA. This article examines how American Ukrainians interacted with the USA Government institutions regarding the celebration and recognition of the Ukrainian Independence day on January 22. The attention is focused on the activities of ethnic Ukrainians in the United States, directed at the organization of the special celebration of the Ukrainian Independence anniversaries in the US Congress and cities. Drawing from the diaspora press and Congressional Records, this article argues that many members of Congress participated in the observed celebration and expressed kind feelings to the Ukrainian people, recognised their fight for freedom, during the House of Representatives and Senate sessions. Several Congressmen submitted the resolutions in the US Congress urging the President of United States to designate January 22 as «Ukrainian lndependence Day». January 22 was proclaimed Ukrainian Day by the governors of fifteen States and mayors of many cities. Keywords: January 22, Ukrainian independence day, Ukrainian diaspora, USA, interaction, Congress

On enlarging the US House of Representatives

1998 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan I. Leib ◽  
Gerald R. Webster
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
The Us

scholarly journals The Career Length and Service of Female Policymakers in the US House of Representatives

2016 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 437-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Praino ◽  
Daniel Stockemer
Keyword(s):  
Gender Gap ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Careers ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Career Length ◽  
The Us ◽  
Using Data

Various studies have outlined the institutional (e.g. the existence of quota laws and the electoral system type of a country) and non-institutional factors (e.g. the political culture of a country) that account for variation in women’s representation, in general, and, in more detail, the low representation of women in the US Congress. However, no study has, so far, compared the Congressional career paths of men and women in order to understand whether this gender gap in representation stems from a difference in terms of the duration and importance of the careers of male and female policymakers. Using data on all US House elections between 1972 and 2012, we provide such an analysis, evaluating whether or not the political careers of women in the US House of Representatives are different from the political careers of their male counterparts. Our findings indicate that the congressional careers of men and women are alike and, if anything, women may even have a small edge over their male colleagues.

scholarly journals Consensus on Graduate Medical Education Financing: An Analysis of Stakeholder Responses to the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Open Letter

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 705-708
Author(s):  
Jared L. Harwood
Keyword(s):  
Medical Education ◽  
Graduate Medical Education ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Open Letter ◽  
Online Search ◽  
Graduate Medical ◽  
Education Financing ◽  
The Us ◽  
Policy Deliberation ◽  
Significant Support

ABSTRACT Background In December 2014, the Energy and Commerce Committee of the US House of Representatives sent an open letter requesting interested parties to respond to 7 questions on graduate medical education (GME). More than 100 organizations and individuals responded. Methods An online search for responses yielded 27 organizations that had published their responses to the committee's open letter. Responses included answers to the 7 questions and additional recommendations. The 27 respondents proposed a total of 80 unique interventions. Each intervention was screened for concordance with those from other organizations, and then categorized as supportive, in opposition, or making no mention. Data were entered into a spreadsheet and rank ordered on the frequency of support. Results At the top of the rankings were several interventions with significant support from many respondents. Conclusions Given the broader GME constituency represented by the 27 stakeholders in this analysis, the 80 proposed interventions represent a comprehensive inventory of the extant ideas regarding the financing, governance, and oversight of GME. This objective analysis could help both spur productive discussions and form the foundation for a larger public policy deliberation of GME financing.

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