A National Challenge at the Local Level

Cusack clarifies a number of central issues about the governance process in modern democratic political systems. First, he endeavours to describe who governs and how they govern at the local level. Second, he seeks to reveal the principal underlying political values of both elites and citizens, how they differ, and why. In addition, he provides a rational explanation for the differences in these political values and finally seeks to uncover the bases for the variation in how well local governments perform.