Tennessee: A Maturing Two-Party System

Authors

  • John M. Bruce
  • John A. Clark
  • Michael M. Gant
  • Linda M. Daugherty

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2374-7781.2003.24.0.165-182

Abstract

Although Tennessee has long had a Republican presence in its political system, the two par-ties have only recently become competitive across the state. As a result, party organizations and activists have the opportunity to play an important role in the state’s elections. Activists in the two parties grew increasingly polarized across the decade of the 1990s in terms of their ideologies and issue positions. Organizationally, both parties seem to be settling into their roles in the political system. Democrats take a more pragmatic approach to politics, while Republicans see more dramatic growth in the strength of their organizations.

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Published

2003-07-01

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Articles