Electoral Patterns and Voting Alignments in the U. S. House, 1886-1986

Abstract

Congressional scholars have examined the relationship between electoral and institutional politics from a variety of perspectives. In this tradition, the focus of analysis here is on the importance of individualism in both arenas. The central proposition considered is that individualism in electoral politics will manifest itself in institutional politics. The analysis examines evidence on House elections and congressional voting alignments for 1886-1986. Special attention is devoted to a comparison of patterns for the New Deal party system and those for the preceding party system.