Race, Class, Religion and the Southern Party System: A Field Report from Dixie
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M.V. Hood
M.V. (Trey) Hood III is a Professor of political science at the University of Georgia where he conducts research in American politics and policy. He is co-author ofThe Rational Southerner: Black Mobilization, Republican Growth, and the Partisan Transformation of the American South .
Abstract
The purpose of this essay is to provide a contemporary examination of the political party system in the Southern US. In doing so, an assessment is undertaken to determine which cleavage line – race, class, or religion – does the best job of explaining the division between Republicans and Democrats in the region. Using survey research data from the 2012 Cooperative Congressional Election Study three multivariate models are employed to study partisan affiliation, presidential voting, and voting in US Senate elections. The results indicate that race, especially the Black-White dichotomy, is the largest dividing line between the Republican and Democratic Parties in the region. In fact, in terms of party identification race dwarfs the effects of religion and class. As related to presidential and Senate voting behavior race continues to exert a significant influence, even after controlling for partisan identification. Conversely, class and religion produced minimal or no effects in models of vote choice. In conclusion, it would appear that the contemporary Southern political landscape, like its predecessor, continues to be defined by racial divisions.
About the author
M.V. (Trey) Hood III is a Professor of political science at the University of Georgia where he conducts research in American politics and policy. He is co-author of The Rational Southerner: Black Mobilization, Republican Growth, and the Partisan Transformation of the American South.
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©2016 by De Gruyter
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Introduction Spring 2016 Issue
- After Obama
- Obama and Race in America
- White Populism and the Transformation of the Silent Majority
- Race, Party, and American Voting Rights
- African Americans and Contemporary Southern Politics
- Race, Class, Religion and the Southern Party System: A Field Report from Dixie
- Reflections on the Achievements of Sidney Verba
- Book reviews
- Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism & Wrecked the Middle Class
- Legislating in the Dark: Information and Power in the House of Representatives
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Introduction Spring 2016 Issue
- After Obama
- Obama and Race in America
- White Populism and the Transformation of the Silent Majority
- Race, Party, and American Voting Rights
- African Americans and Contemporary Southern Politics
- Race, Class, Religion and the Southern Party System: A Field Report from Dixie
- Reflections on the Achievements of Sidney Verba
- Book reviews
- Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism & Wrecked the Middle Class
- Legislating in the Dark: Information and Power in the House of Representatives
