Date of Graduation

12-2002

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Political Science (MA)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Political Science

Advisor/Mentor

Parry, Janine A.

Committee Member

Shields, Todd G.

Second Committee Member

Schreckhise, William D.

Keywords

American democracy; legislative agendas; bureaucratic agencies

Abstract

At the very heart of American politics and government is democracy. Debates abound about the nature of American democracy, and especially ways to improve symbolic representation, substantive representation and/or participation by groups typically considered in the political minority (Moss-Kanter 1977; Pipert-High and Comer 1988; Saint-Germaine 1989; Seldon 1997; Thomas 1997). One focus of this literature is on the outputs of bureaucratic agencies or legislative agendas. If advocates of representative democracy hope to create legislatures on both the state and the national levels that contain an adequate presence of female representatives in order to fully represent women, they must begin with an analysis of the campaign process. The campaign process is the first test for any future legislator, as it is the only mechanism candidates have to strive for office. Finally, the campaign process not only holds the answers to where possible electoral discrimination lies but also provides answers to solve discrimination.

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