A theory of critical elections. A Theory of Critical Elections (August 1993 edition) 2022-10-18

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A theory of critical elections suggests that certain electoral cycles or turning points in a nation's political history can have significant and lasting impacts on the direction and character of the political system. These critical elections are seen as moments of political transformation, when the traditional balance of power shifts and new political alignments emerge.

According to this theory, critical elections are often driven by major economic, social, or technological changes that disrupt the existing political order and create new opportunities for political actors. For example, the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century led to the emergence of new economic and social classes, and the development of mass political parties that were able to mobilize these groups and challenge the old elite. Similarly, the emergence of the Internet and social media in the late 20th and early 21st centuries has empowered new political movements and disrupted traditional forms of political communication.

Critical elections can also be triggered by major political events or crises, such as wars, revolutions, or the collapse of a dominant political party. These events can create a sense of political instability and lead to the emergence of new leaders and ideologies that offer a different vision for the future.

The impact of critical elections can be significant and long-lasting. They often result in the rise of new political parties or the realignment of existing parties, and can lead to significant changes in public policy and the direction of the country. In some cases, critical elections can even lead to the emergence of new political systems, as happened in the United States after the Civil War and in Eastern Europe following the collapse of communism.

While the theory of critical elections is not without controversy, it remains an important framework for understanding the dynamics of political change and the role of elections in shaping the direction of a nation. By studying critical elections, we can gain insight into the forces that shape political systems and the ways in which different groups and ideologies compete for power and influence.

Critical Election Theory

a theory of critical elections

These and other antecedent variations affect the act of voting itself as well as subsequent behavior. When one probes below the surface of the gross elec­ tion figures it becomes apparent that a sharp and durable rea lignment also occurred within the electorate, a fact renective of the activation by the Demo­ cratic candidate of low-income, Catholic, urban voters of recent immigrant stock. . The electorate occupies, at least in the mystique of such orders, the position of the principal organ of governance; it acts through elections. Even within a single nation the reality of election differs greatly from time to time. These comments suppose, of course, the existence of other types of complexes of behavior centering about for­ mal elections, the systematic isolation and identification of wnich, fortunately, are not essential for the present discussion. In B any case, what are the consequences for the public order? He claims that they behave responsibly and rationally and concern themselves more with relevant questions of public policy, government performance and executive personality instead of purely by social determinants or propaganda.

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a theory of critical elections

Founded in 1893, University of California Press, Journals and Digital Publishing Division, disseminates scholarship of enduring value. The journal also publishes approximately one thousand book reviews per year, surveying and reporting the most important contemporary historical scholarship in the discipline. Anti-election fraud begins with confession. They will therefore remain silent about election fraud and deny that it is widespread, systemic, and damaging to the lives of the defrauded. . Key begins by noting that not all elections are the same, and sets out to examine the existence of elections in which the voters appear deeply involved, participatory, and result in a change in the cleavages within the electorate, termed a critical election. Key examines Massachusetts and New England election returns for the election of Al Smith in 1928, the first Catholic presidential nominee.


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Key, V. O. (1955). A Theory of Critical Elections. The Journal of Politics, 17, 3

a theory of critical elections

The actual election rarely presents in pure form a case fitting completely any particular concept. An election itself is a formal act of collec­ tive decision that occurs in a stream of connected antecedent and subsequent be­ havior. On the other hand, the two elections with the lowest levels of youth mobilization lacked younger candidates whose campaigns failed to actively court young voters in any way. Enforces parties wanting to win office and results in selecting candidates that are widely favored. Definition: According to Anthony Downs, a "team of men seeking to control the governing apparatus by gaining office in a duly constituted election" 5 Tasks of Political Parties: 1.

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AP Gov ch 8 Flashcards

a theory of critical elections

The rise in Democratic strength was especially notable in Massa­ chusetts and Rhode Island. Even the most fleeting inspection of American elections suggests the existence of a category of elections in which vot­ ers are, at least from impressionistic evidence, unusually deeply concerned, in 2 200 Political Parties and the Electorate in such elections seems to persist for several succeeding elections. The result was an electoral coalition formidable in mass but which re­ quired both good fortune and skill in political manage ment for its maintenance, given its latent internal contradictions. Elections which had the greatest levels of youth turnout had significantly younger candidates whose campaigns directly targeted youth through new means. SAGE Library of Political Science.

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U.S. Gov

a theory of critical elections

Significance: Governments are selling positions for the highest bid. Examples for party realignment include the Great Depression and the Civil War. Despite such difficulties, the attempt to move toward a better under­ standing of elections in the terms here employed could provide a means for better integrating the study of electoral behavior with the analysis of political systems. Percent 100r---­- ---­- ---­---­- ---. An indifference about matters political? The Pacific Historical Review also includes notes and documents, historiographies, and forums on a broad range of topics. Significance: National committee is composed of representatives from the states and territories.

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A Theory of Critical Elections

a theory of critical elections

It is constructed by those who have been granted the power to authenticate elections, and those people are chosen primarily by people who win elections and who benefit from election fraud. A question occurs, for example, about the character of the consequences for the political system of the temporal frequency of critical elections. He then replicates these results in the rest of the state and in the remaining New England states aggregating the towns or districts with the biggest Democratic gains against those with the smallest. With respect to these basic criteria the election of 1896 falls within the same category as that of 1928, although it differed in other respects. Perhaps the basic differentiating characteristic of democratic order consists in the expression of effective choice by the mass of the people in elections. The American Historical Review AHR is the official publication of the American Historical Association AHA. National chairperson hires staff, raises the money, pays the bills, and attends to daily party duties.

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A Theory of Critical Elections (August 1993 edition)

a theory of critical elections

A Theory of Critical Elections. His Southern Politics 1949 is based on both the analysis of local election returns and interviews with politicians and observers; in subsequent books, he pioneered in the use of survey research data in the study of politics. What are the con­ sequences of a situation that creates recurring, evenly balanced conflict over long periods? Definition: One of the key inducements used by party machines. For over 70 years, the Pacific Historical Review has accurately and adeptly covered the history of American expansion to the Pacific and beyond, as well as the post-frontier developments of the 20th-century American West. A systematic comparative approach, with a focus on variations in the nature of elections would doubtless be fruitful in advancing the understanding of the democratic governing process. Mean Democratic percentage of 25 towns ~ with widest Democratic gains, 1928-1932 o 19L16----~~--~----~~----~----~--~~~~~~~~~--719~52 4 202 Political Parties and the Electorate Percent F 60 Mean Democratic percentage of 22 towns 40 ' - - - with widest Democratic gain, 1920-1928 --- -.

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THEORY OF CRITICAL ELECTIONS

a theory of critical elections

Edited by Kai Arzheimer and Jocelyn Evans. This provides them with insights that political and fraudster privilege blind those with fraud complicity to. What he finds is that these new coalitions began at a certain point and remained durable over his period of analysis, 1916 to 1952. National chairperson is the person responsible for the day to day activities of the party. Their fraud complicity is a feature of their political privilege. In truth, a considerable proportlon of the study of electoral behavior has only a ten­ uous relation to polities. All these charac­ teristics cumu late to the conception of an election type in which the depth and in­ tensity of electoral involvement are high, in which more or less profound readjustments occur in the relations of power within the community, and in which new and durable electoral groupings are formed.

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