Mobilizing the Seldom Voter: Campaign Contact and Effects in High-Profile Elections

Decades of research suggests that campaign contact together with an advantageous socioeconomic profile increases the likelihood of casting a ballot. Measurement and modeling handicaps permit a lingering uncertainty about campaign communication as a source of political mobilization however. Using dat...

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Veröffentlicht in:Political behavior 2008-03, Vol.30 (1), p.97-113
Hauptverfasser: Parry, Janine, Barth, Jay, Kropf, Martha, Jones, E. Terrence
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:Decades of research suggests that campaign contact together with an advantageous socioeconomic profile increases the likelihood of casting a ballot. Measurement and modeling handicaps permit a lingering uncertainty about campaign communication as a source of political mobilization however. Using data from a uniquely detailed telephone survey conducted in a pair of highly competitive 2002 U. S. Senate races, we further investigate who gets contacted, in what form, and with what effect. We conclude that even in high- profile, high- dollar races the most important determinant of voter turnout is vote history, but that holding this variable constant reveals a positive effect for campaign communication among "seldom" voters, registered but rarely active participants who—ironically—are less likely than regular or intermittent voters to receive such communication.
ISSN:0190-9320
1573-6687
DOI:10.1007/s11109-007-9042-9