The Politics of Ballot Design
How States Shape American Democracy
Published on 17. December 2020
Book
Hardback
166 pages
978-1-108-84280-8 (ISBN)
Description
US federalism grants state legislators the authority to design many aspects of election administration, including ballot features that mediate how citizens understand and engage with the choices available to them when casting their votes. Seemingly innocuous features in the physical design of ballots, such as the option to cast a straight ticket with a single checkmark, can have significant aggregate effects. Drawing on theoretical insights from behavioral economics and extensive data on state ballot laws from 1888 to the present, as well as in-depth case studies, this book shows how strategic politicians use ballot design to influence voting and elections, drawing comparisons across different periods in American history with varying levels of partisanship and contention. Engstrom and Roberts demonstrate the sweeping impact of ballot design on voting, elections, and democratic representation.
Reviews / Votes
'Erik Engstrom and Jason Roberts have written the definitive modern study of the politics of ballot design in the United States. Ballot design laws are intensely fought over in state legislatures, and they have consequences for election outcomes. This book deftly combines historical and modern statistical analysis that will be of great interest to both the academic researchers, students of election science, election administrators, and those who influence the laws by which we mark our ballots.' Charles Stewart III, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 'Engstrom and Roberts vividly demonstrate how the design of voting ballots shapes both turnout and voter choice. Particularly compelling are two major contributions: the application of 'nudge' to the understanding of voters' decisions, and how political circumstances lead politicians to redesign ballots to achieve new political goals.' John Aldrich, Duke University 'This book makes a powerful argument to carefully consider the democratic implications of how ballots are redesigned and by whom ... Highly recommended.' T. Marchant-Shapiro, ChoiceMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises
Dimensions
Height: 232 mm
Width: 154 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
380 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-108-84280-8 (9781108842808)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Erik J. Engstrom | Jason M. Roberts
The Politics of Ballot Design
How States Shape American Democracy
Book
04/2022
Cambridge University Press
€40.00
Shipment within 15-20 days
E-Book
12/2020
Cambridge University Press
€73.99
Available for download
Erik J. Engstrom | Jason M. Roberts
The Politics of Ballot Design
How States Shape American Democracy
E-Book
12/2020
Cambridge University Press
€23.49
Available for download
Persons
Erik J. Engstrom is Professor of Political Science at University of California, Davis. He is the author or co-author of three books-most recently Race, Class, and Social Welfare: American Populism since the New Deal (2020). He was the co-winner of the 2015 J. David Greenstone Prize for best book in Politics and History from the American Political Science Association.
Content
1. Introduction; 2. How the ballot 'Nudges' voters; 3. Ballot architecture in the progressive era; 4. The personal vote era, 1940-2000; 5. Ballot architecture in the contemporary partisan era; 6. Reconsidering the American ballot; Bibliography; Index.