History and Political Science Congressional Elections - Report Example

History and Political Science – Congressional Elections The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively explore the dynamic realm of the United States Congress, which has emerged as a representation of the American systems through projections of the nation’s multiethnic, diverse and broad-based structure. If that representation is a true reflection of the aforementioned attributes of American society is rather debatable however, the specific objective of this paper is not to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the bicameral legislature but to understand the complexity and intricacy of congressional elections. From the distinct perspective of congressional elections the discussion is directed towards an analysis of 1) why members of the Congress are highly successful in securing a reelection 2) how members of the Congress use their offices to aid their reelection 3) what do the patterns and characteristics of congressional elections signify for governance and 4) what do the patterns and characteristics of congressional elections indicate for the matter of representation in the United States. “Most members are reelected even if they have not done that much for their home districts” observe Welch et al. (2011, 290) with regards to the high rates of Congress members who are successfully able to secure a reelection. This observation evokes an immediate question to mind, that needs to be addressed on an immediate basis because Welch et al.’s (2011, 290) statement and the inspection of several other authors and scholars on the same matter has generated comparable results. Assessing the scenario from a broad perspective, it can be declared that the most critical factor with respect to the high rates of congressional reelections is associated with the factor of incumbency. As noted by Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 129), in comparison with incumbents, members of the Congress command a significant benefit which is demonstrated by the fact that candidates who have previously secured a seat in the Congress and later running for a reelection are able to ensure that their campaign yields desired consequences. Furthermore, Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 129) understand that another critical contributing element that defines the voting behavior of congressional voters is that of party identification. The manner through which this factor culminates into positive consequences for Congress members who are seeking reelection can be discussed by exploring how this factor has the potential to predict one’s voting patterns for Congress. According to the assessment of Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 129) the influence of party identification in determining voting behavior is much more significant and applicable in the case of congressional elections in comparison with presidential elections. Additionally, the importance of partisanship in shaping voting decisions has declined as incumbency continues to emerge as an electoral force. Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 129) conclude that when examining the implications of party identification and incumbency in outlining voting decisions, incumbency still holds more significance thereby, transforming election to Congress a complicated milestone to accomplish while, making reelection an easily achievable feat. For Hames and Rae (1996, 252) congressional election trends are representative of the rising trend in which voters have opted to abide by candidate-centered voting rather than following a party-centered voting pattern. This characteristic has further contributed towards the authority that is commanded by incumbency. According to statistical data from the period of the latter half of the 1970s towards the end of 1980s, the ability of Congress members to seek reelection grew significantly, primarily in the House of Representatives. Examining the data separately and in accordance with election results for 1974, 1984 and 1986, it can be stated that 90 per cent, 95 per cent and 98 per cent members were reelected in the aforementioned years respectively (Hames and Rae 1996, 252). Accordingly, Welch et al. (2011, 290) attribute that the benefits of incumbency are such that they contribute towards the enhancement of the member’s chances of reelection, these factors encompass name recognition and access to extensive campaign financing options that are discussed in further detail in the paper. The concept of name recognition and its unprecedented influence within the realm of Congress is rather simple. Indeed individuals who currently hold offices are known both in political and public spheres while, their contenders are largely unrecognized and their names unheard of (Dewhirst and Rausch 2009, 130). This factor yet again integrates the observation of Hames and Rae (1996, 252) into the discussion regarding the rise of candidate-centered voting and the decline of party affiliations and loyalties which can be taken as a starting point for examining the impact of the rise of independents in congressional elections and member reelections. In the period succeeding the 1960s, voting behaviors have changed dramatically with the tag of Democrat and Republican fading into the background due to the rise of a potential candidates profile and his/her emergence as a political entity rather than the extension of a political ideology that is promoted by either the Democrats or Republicans (Dewhirst and Rausch 2009, 130). Shedding light on the current scenario Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 130) claim that “the use of incumbency as a voting cue has resulted in decreasing the number of competitive seats”. In pursuit of theorizing and explaining the phenomenon of the high rate of reelection for Congress members, political scientists have conducted conceptual analysis and developed terminologies to define the grounds on which most incumbents are successfully able to secure their place in the office. A prominent concept that has been used by scholars to assess the reelection of Congress members and the factors that contribute towards this matter is known as ‘home style’. Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 130) postulate that ‘home style’ evidences the candidate-centered philosophy of voters and is essentially an extension of the idea that voters are indeed supportive of their congressional representatives while, detesting the structure of Congress as a whole. Therefore, this concept implies that it is more important for Congress members to maintain and continue to enhance their perception in the eyes of their national constituency because in the political arena, perception is analogous to reality itself. An intriguing element of the ‘home style’ factor as noted by Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 130) is the manner in which Congress members strive to maintain a strong association with their constituency to garner keys support and advocacy for their endeavors in addition with their campaign for reelection. While, a critical step that is taken in this regard is launching activities and programs in the respective constituency, a member of the Congress can also appeal to his/her constituent by donning a physical persona that relates to the people of the area, this includes closely adopting to the speech patterns of the residents and carefully selecting their wardrobe. Other tactics that are used by Congress members to secure their position include franking, pork barreling and campaign financing sources (Dewhirst and Rausch 2009, 130). With regards to the strategic use of franking, incumbents enjoy an upper hand because they can take advantage of this opportunity to mail constituents (Banks and Kiewiet 1989) which according to Hibbing and Welch (1997) is an “abuse of congressional prerogatives”. Similarly, pork barrel politics encompasses the execution of a rather popular practice amongst legislators whereby, government projects are brought by members to their constituency for achieving the exclusive aim of advancing their political careers (Dewhirst and Rausch 2009, 130). For the purposes of understanding the influence of pork barreling as a critical factor in the reelection of incumbents, the vote equation that has been presented by Feldman and Jondrow (1984, 148) can be integrated into the discussion. The vote equation stipulates that an incumbent’s reelection into congressional office is dependent upon two variables which are that of the federal spending that takes place in the incumbent’s constituency and several other standardizing variables (Feldman and Jondrow 1984, 148). With reference to pork barreling however, the federal spending variable is the primary concern of the discussion. According to the analysis of Feldman and Jondrow (1984, 148), instances of pork barreling are most evident in the composition of federal construction expenditure which comprises of the development of infrastructure such as office premises, roads and irrigation projects amongst several other activities. As noted by Dewhirst and Rausch (2009, 130) the factor of campaign finance has surfaced as the unchallenged element that favors incumbents who are seeking reelection while, damaging the prospects of their contenders who do not have access to the same level of monetary sources to convey their message to voters. The extent to which this factor continues to remain unparalleled in determining the high rate of incumbent reelection is reflected in Ashworth’s (2006, 55) statement which claims that, “There is an incumbency advantage in fundraising, which is sometimes so great that the incumbent faces no opposition at all”. Estimated figures that suggest the amount that is needed to seriously pose a threat to an incumbent stand at $500,000 with these figures escalating to $1 million in scenarios where members venture into larger media channels to conduct advertising and convey their message across (Dewhirst and Rausch 2009, 130). While, the aforementioned figures present an issue of raising large capital, a more serious problem is finding sources and then convincing them that an investment in the contender’s campaign for office would prove to be worthwhile and fruitful. Yet again, this factor can also be traced back to the notion of name recognition and the notion that perception is indeed reality in the political sphere. For campaign financiers hold this perception that the incumbent is likely to secure a position in Congress following their prior tenure and the voter tendency of candidate-centered voting, the challengers stand no chance to convince donors and funding entities to favor their campaign instead of the incumbent’s. Synthesizing the consequences of incumbency and the advantages that are associated with it, Hertzke and Peters (1992, 145) declare that the power which is held by incumbents is such that prospective contenders do not wish to challenge them. For example in the elections of 1988s, one-fifth members of the House were ensured that they would emerge as successful and victorious for they faced no threat of competition by a major force (Hertzke and Peters 1992, 145). The implications of the factors that are play during the process of successful Congressional reelection are wide-ranging such that they are responsible for shaping the procedures that are associated with governance, the effectiveness of the structure, the development of operations and the state of political representation across the United States. Hames and Rae (1996, 252) trace the politically motivated and career based intentions of Congress members in managing their election campaigns to secure a reelection back to the 1970s during which the members were granted with several official benefits that are exercised to this day. For instance, the House of Representatives holds the ability to provide guidance and aid to its members by safeguarding their interests through the establishment of committees that assist the routing of federal spending to the locality from which the member belongs. When such tactics of pork barreling are executed, candidates may lose their objectivity as to whether the constituency is in need of the project that is being brought to them and whether there exists another locality that could benefit from the investment to a greater extent. Moreover, in the steering of national expenditure to a specific area for the mere purpose of political advancement which essentially is ‘career growth’ for members of the Congress because of the presence of the career goal affect, an objective valuation of the needs and requirement of the locality maybe ignored which could have negative consequences in both the short-run and long-run. Given the privileges that are enjoyed by incumbents that are demonstrated by access to campaign finance and the exploitation of congressional prerogatives for political gain the composition of the structure has come under scrutiny and criticism because it fails to adhere to the values of a fair political system in which the citizens are able to benefit from effective representation and governance. Due to factors including the high rates of reelection and a corresponding decline in the rates of voluntary retirement the structure of the Congress has become such that members are serving in the system for prolonged periods thereby, leading to collective ageing (Hames and Rae 1996, 250). Hames and Rae (1996, 250) assert that these patterns have invited criticism from several facets of society that have noted the establishment of a ‘permanent Congress’ that has become stagnant and therefore, is not in a position to perform effectively and deliver governance in a representative manner that is sought by the citizens of the United States of America. Works Cited Ashworth, Scott. "Campaign finance and voter welfare with entrenched incumbents." American Political Science Review 100.01 (2006): 55-68. Web. Banks, Jeffrey S., and D. Roderick Kiewiet. "Explaining patterns of candidate competition in congressional elections." American Journal of Political Science(1989): 997-1015. Web. Dewhirst, Robert E, and John D. Rausch. Encyclopedia of the United States Congress. New York: Facts On File, 2009. Print. Feldman, Paul, and James Jondrow. "Congressional Elections and Local Federal." American Journal of Political Science (1984): 147-164. Web. Hames, Tim, and Nicol C. Rae. Governing America: History, Culture, Institutions, Organisation, Policy. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996. Print. Hertzke, Allen D, and Ronald M. Peters. The Atomistic Congress: An Interpretation of Congressional Change. Armonk, N.Y: M.E. Sharpe, 1992. Print. Hibbing, John R., and Susan Welch. "The effects of charges of corruption on voting behavior in congressional elections, 1982–1990." The Journal of Politics59.1 (1997): 226-239. Web. Welch, Susan, et al. Understanding American Government. Cengage Learning, 2011. Web. Read More