Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office

Description

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office explores the factors that drive political ambition at the earliest stages. Using data from a comprehensive survey of thousands of eligible candidates, Jennifer L. Lawless systematically investigates what compels certain citizens to pursue elective positions and others to recoil at the notion. Lawless assesses personal factors, such as race, gender, and family dynamics, that affect an eligible candidate's likelihood of considering a run for office. She also focuses on eligible candidates' professional lives and attitudes toward the political system. Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Tables List of Figures Acknowledgments 1: Mudslinging, Money-Grubbing, and Mayhem: Who Would Ever Run for Office? The Importance of Studying the Initial Decision to Run for Office Organization of the Book 2: The Decision to Run for Office: The Theoretical and Methodological Approach The Initial Decision to Run for Office: Developing a More Complete Theory of Political Ambition The Citizen Political Ambition Panel Study 3: Political Ambition in the Candidate Eligibility Pool Candidate Emergence from the Eligibility Pool Who Runs for Office? Eligible Candidates’ Expressive Ambition Who Considers Running for Office? Eligible Candidates’ Nascent Ambition Predicting Nascent Ambition: The Null Effects of the Political Opportunity Structure Dynamic Ambition in the Candidate Eligibility Pool Conclusion 4: Barack Obama and 18 Million Cracks in the Glass Ceiling: Sex, Race, and Political Ambition The Politics of Exclusion: Sex, Race, and the Conventional Explanations for Numeric Underrepresentation Sex, Race, and Political Ambition: Existing Literature and Competing Expectations Similarities in Political Participation, Proximity, and Interest: An Overview by Sex and Race Sex, Race, and Interest in Running for Office Sex, Race, and Changes in Interest in Running for Office: Predicting Dynamic Ambition Conclusion 5: You Could Be President Someday!: Early Socialization, the Role of Family, and Political Ambition In the Genes: The Lifelong Effects of a Politicized Upbringing The Influence of Family Structures and Roles on Political Ambition Changes in Family Circumstances: Predicting Dynamic Ambition Conclusion 6: On-the-Job Training: Professional Circumstances and the Decision to Run for Office Professional Differences and Political Ambition in the Candidate Eligibility Pool: A Bivariate Analysis The Role of Income and Financial Success The Role of Professionally Conferred Political Proximity The Role of Professional Credentials and Qualifications A Side Note on the Gender Gap in Perceptions of Qualifications The Impact of Professional Circumstances on Political Ambition: Multivariate Results Changes in Professional Circumstances: Predicting Dynamic Ambition Conclusion 7: You Think I Should Run for Office?: Political Parties, Political Recruitment, and Political Ambition Eligible Candidates’ Political Attitudes and Partisanship Who Gets Asked to Run for Office? Political Recruitment and Considering a Candidacy Changes in Relationships With and About the Political Parties: Predicting Dynamic Ambition Conclusion 8: Biting the Bullet: Deciding to Run for Office So Many Reasons Not to Run for Office: Negative Perceptions of the Electoral Environment and the Campaign Process Fundraising as a Deterrent to Running for Office Invasion of Privacy as a Deterrent to Running for Office Negative Campaigning as a Deterrent to Running for Office Expressing That Ambition: The Decision to Enter an Actual Race The Role of the Political Opportunity Structure Conclusion 9: Future Patterns of Candidate Emergence and Studies of Political Ambition Summary of the Findings: Contemporary Patterns of Candidate Emergence Implications for Candidate Emergence and the Study of Political Ambition APPENDIX A: The Citizen Political Ambition Panel Study APPENDIX B: The First Wave Survey (2001) APPENDIX C: The Second Wave Survey (2008) APPENDIX D: The First Wave Interview Questionnaire APPENDIX E: The Second Wave Interview Questionnaire APPENDIX F: Coding of Variables Works Cited Index