Republican Strength at the Grass Roots: An Analysis at the County Level

Authors

  • Charles S. Bullock

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2374-7781.1991.12.0.80-99

Abstract

This paper analyzes growing Republicanism from the perspective of officeholding at the county level. Using data from a 1991 survey, we show that Republicans currently hold somewhat less than 10 percent of all county offices. Their greatest success has come in those posts offering a wider range of responsibilities. Republican county success is associated with the frequency of Republican majorities in statewide elections. Further, more Republican county officials are found in the Atlanta area, in counties experiencing more growth and, for some offices, in more affluent counties and those in which blacks constitute a higher proportion of the registered voters. The significance of the expanding corps of Republican officeholders is the potential for a more experienced cadre of candidates for higher offices than typically put forward in the past

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Published

1991-11-01

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Articles