Membership Change and Collective Voting Change in the United States Supreme Court

Abstract

Scholars and other observers of the Supreme Court generally perceive that change in the Court's membership is the primary source of change in its policies and decisional patterns. This article is an effort to test that perception by examining the sources of collective voting change in civil liberties decisions during the 1946-1985 terms of the Court. Focusing on periods of significant change in collective voting behavior during this era, the analysis shows that membership change was the primary source of voting change overall but that change in the voting behavior of continuing members played a major role in producing collective voting change during some periods.