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Political and Demographic Foundations for Sectionalism in State Politics: The Connecticut Case

University of Maryland, College Park

Jason E. Schuknecht

Westat, Inc.

Defined in terms of partisanship, substate sectionalism remains pervasive within many states, although it is probably not a constant, even in the short term. Here we ask about the forces that are responsible for producing substate sectionalism as evidenced by support for the two major parties. Using a geographic statistic as our indicator, we evaluate the degree of sectionalism over time in Connecticut presidential and gubernatorial elections. Population trends have increased the extent of sectionalism in the state mainly by exacerbating inequalities between deindustrializing cities in Central Connecticut and prosperous, growing ones in Fairfield County. The growth of the Black population is associated with increasing regionalism in both sets of elections give that the African American population remains concentrated in the largest cities. The study of sectionalism in Connecticut helps us to specify how population growth and redistribution contribute to the political geography of state politics.

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