Which U.S. House Members Present Their Legislative Records? Models of Electoral Accountability and the Content of Press Releases

Abstract

This article tests competing theories of legislators' understanding of electoral accountability by examining which members of the House of Representatives convey their legislative records to the public most frequently. Using data derived from lawmakers' descriptions of their floor votes and other legislative activity in more than 50,000 press releases issued during 2010 and 2012, I detect some behavior consistent with representatives' beliefs that voters assess their policy positions without a party frame. Members whose record is incongruous with their constituents' policy preferences tend to avoid mentions of their personal legislative behavior, for example. For the most part, however, the article provides strong evidence that members subscribe to a partisan model and particularly a version in which voters care appreciably more about the actions of the majority than the minority.