36: Elections and Voting Behavior

Michele Claibourn, University of Virginia, mclaibourn@virginia.edu

Elections are a fundamental, if not always effective, mechanism of democratic representation. In line with this year's conference theme, 'Representation and Renewal,' research on the the conditions that promote or inhibit representation in campaigns, elections and voting -- at the individual, the candidate, or the system level -- are especially welcome, as are proposals that address how elections and voting produce more or less equal representation by defining whose interests elites are seeking to represent and whose voices are invited to demand representation. As well, work that seeks to connect campaigns and elections to the behavior of elites within representative institutions is strongly encouraged.

In addition, I seek proposals that examine traditional questions of campaign strategy, campaign effects on voter decision-making, individual and contextual determinants of electoral behavior, and the impact of reforms, policy changes or court cases on campaigns and elections. I welcome scholarship that considers voting and elections comparatively and within the important but often overlooked state and local arenas. Finally, proposals that advance new theoretical approaches or that innovate methodologically are encouraged.