Out of Step, Out of Office: Electoral Accountability and House Members' Voting

2002/03/01 by BRANDICE CANES-WRONE, Brandice Canes‐Wrone, David Brady +3 · 844 citations
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Psychology · Social Sciences · #Accountability #Advertising #Business #Electoral Systems and Political Participation #Fiscal Policies and Political Economy #Gender Politics and Representation #Group voting ticket #House of Representatives #Ideology #Law #Legislature #Political science #Politics #Psychology #Public administration #Public relations #Quality (philosophy) #Single-member district #Voting #Voting behavior #Worry

paper · doi:10.1017/s0003055402004276

published in American Political Science Review 96(1), 127-140 (Cambridge University Press)

openalex publication_date 2002/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/25

Abstract

Does a typical House member need to worry about the electoral ramifications of his roll-call decisions? We investigate the relationship between incumbents' electoral performance and roll-call support for their party—controlling for district ideology, challenger quality, and campaign spending, among other factors—through a series of tests of the 1956–1996 elections. The tests produce three key findings indicating that members are indeed accountable for their legislative voting. First, in each election, an incumbent receives a lower vote share the more he supports his party. Second, this effect is comparable in size to that of other widely recognized electoral determinants. Third, a member's probability of retaining office decreases as he offers increased support for his party, and this relationship holds for not only marginal, but also safe members.

Citations

• Comparing Interest Group Scores across Time and Chambers: Adjusted ADA Scores for the U.S. Congress

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