POLITICIANS AND ELECTORAL LAWS: AN ANTHROPOLOGY OF PARTY COMPETITION IN IRELAND

Abstract At one level this paper constitutes an electoral anthropology of party competition in Ireland. Focusing on one constituency, over three decades, the analysis reveals the complex and intertwined patterns of inter-party and intra-party competition that characterize Irish electoral politics and which, now institutionalized, contribute to the conservative cast of the country's politics. At a second level the argument points to the importance of the electoral system (here Proportional Representation by the single transferable vote) in structuring the behaviors of politicians who must work within it. In this regard an electoral system affects both the quality and quantity of competition, the character of party organization, and the capacity of a political system to recruit talent.     

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ROLL CALL VOTING IN THE U.S. CONGRESS IN 1975 AND 1979

This article argues that the energy and environmental policy areas in Congress are no longer considered components of the government management dimension. The two policy areas have separated from the government management dimension constructed by Clausen and are now distinct and autonomous Congressional policy areas. The models of roll call voting for energy and environment issues are very different. Energy is tied more closely to technical considerations while environmental issues are more emotional and more closely tied to quality of life concerns.