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Elections and State Party Polarization

University of Mississippi

Gerald C. Wright

Indiana University

This article examines the effect of ideological polarization in state party systems on the broad contours of state electoral outcomes. Measuring ideological polarization using CBS / New York Times surveys combined over the period from 1976 to 1988, we find that increased ideological polarization among state party coalitions has a significant dampening effect on split-ticket voting, party defection, vote swing, and electoral volatility. Our comparison of state party systems suggests that the general decline of party in structuring electoral outcomes has not been uniform across the states, and that the ideological distinctiveness of state partisans has a systematic impact on state elections.

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