Bulletin n. 1-2/2014
November 2014
CONTENTS
  • Section A) The theory and practise of the federal states and multi-level systems of government
  • Section B) Global governance and international organizations
  • Section C) Regional integration processes
  • Section D) Federalism as a political idea
  • David R Jones
    A More Responsible Two-Party System? Accountability for Majority and Minority Party Performance in a Polarized Congress
    in Polity , Volume 46, Issue 3 ,  2014 ,  470-492
    Existing research suggests that to the extent that accountability for congressional performance occurs, it does so primarily through a referendum on the performance of the majority party. If true, this means that the minority party has no incentive to act responsibly, and may even have an incentive to polarize and obstruct. I argue that Americans do not simply hold one summary evaluation of congressional performance. Instead, partisan polarization in Congress has allowed Americans to form distinct evaluations of each congressional party. When casting ballots in House elections, Americans take into account their evaluations of both congressional parties. As a result, American politics is now closer to the “responsible two-party system” ideal set by the American Political Science Association more than six decades ago.
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