WHY AMERICANS DON'T VOTE - Softcover

Piven, Frances Fox

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0679723188 ISBN 13: 9780679723189

Publisher: Pantheon, 1989

Synopsis

Looks at the history of U.S. elections, explains how barriers are put up to discourage the poor from voting, and discusses the possibility to reform

About this title

From Library Journal:

The explosive thesis of this arresting book is that legal barriers to voter registration have prevented the formation of a class-based political system in the United States. If America had mandatory registration, two of three nonvoters would be Democrat, and Carter would have beaten Reagan in 1980. Politicians do not respond to profound social, labor, and economic issues buried in the unarticulate half of the electorate. The authors ( Regulating the Poor ) review the shrinking of the political universe that followed the critical election of 1896. They are institutional theorists and hold stiff registration requirements responsible for limiting voter surges during the New Deal and the 1960s. But the rise of agency registration and legal challenges to existing rules portend political realignment. An important book for all students of voting behavior. Harry W. Fritz, Univ. of Montana, Missoula
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pantheon
• Publication date: 1989
• ISBN 10: 0679723188
• ISBN 13: 9780679723189
• Binding: Paperback