|
|
|
|
||||
|
||||
The Effect of the Seventeenth Amendment on the Party Composition of the Senate: A Counterfactual AnalysisCharles Stewart IIIMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Political Science Wendy J. SchillerBrown University - Department of Political Science March 25, 2011 MIT Political Science Department Research Paper Abstract: We explore two counterfactuals to assess the effects of the 17th Amendment on the party composition of the U.S. Senate. We improve upon past analysis by (1) using multiple indicators of mass partisan support before 1914 and (2) estimating election outcomes every two years. We find, contrary to past claims, that had direct election been instituted before 1914, the composition of the Senate would not have been much different from the historical pattern of membership. The most important effect of direct election was felt in the 1930s - without direct election, Democratic majorities would have been much narrower during the New Deal.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 60 working papers seriesDate posted: March 26, 2011Suggested CitationContact Information
|
|
|||||||||||||||||
© 2013 Social Science Electronic Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
FAQ
Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Copyright
This page was processed by apollo7 in 0.376 seconds
