Crossing the Aisle
Party Switching by US Legislators in the Postwar Era

This book provides the first-ever systematic study of causes and consequences of elite party switching in the US.

Antoine Yoshinaka (Author)

9781107536067, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 26 November 2015

280 pages, 5 b/w illus. 20 tables
22.8 x 15.2 x 1.5 cm, 0.4 kg

'By analyzing members' decisions to switch parties (or not) in the postwar era, Antoine Yoshinaka provides important and at times unexpected insight into all members' partisan identities, and into legislative party organizations more generally. Crossing the Aisle is a must-read for those interested in the U.S. Congress, legislative behavior, political parties, and partisan identification.' Kathryn Pearson, Congress and the Presidency

Switching parties is arguably the most important decision a politician will ever make. This book is the first-ever systematic study of the causes and consequences of legislative party switching in the United States. The author argues that re-election alone does not explain party switching. He proposes an ambition-based theory that accounts for multiple goals (including higher office aspirations and the desire for influence in the legislature) with a focus on the electoral costs and the institutional benefits of the decision. The book combines the statistical analysis of electoral data and legislative careers in the US Congress and state legislatures with elite interviews of party switchers, non-switchers, and a party leader. The case study of a party switcher's decision in 'real time' documents the complexity of the decision in a politician's own words prior to and following the switch. The book raises important questions regarding the meaning of a party label.

Part I: 1. Legislative party switching in the United States: an introduction
2. Party switching: a theoretical framework
Part II: 3. Why do members of Congress switch parties?
4. Progressive ambition and party switching: testing the model on state legislators
Part III: 5. The electoral consequences of party switching among members of Congress
6. The benefits of party switching: intrainstitutional advancement and the committee assignment process
Part IV: 7. Behind the scenes: the role of party leaders, rank-and-file members, and former party switchers
8. A 'real-time' look into the decision to cross the aisle
9. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Constitution: government & the state [JPHC]