Abstract
In response to a critique of his work by Stephen C. Craig (1985), the author marshals additional evidence that in regard to the relationship between voters and the two major parties in the U.S., it is not so much that people's confidence in the parties has eroded, but rather that the prominence of individual candidates has turned voters' attention away from the parties, making their attitudes toward the parties neutral rather than negative.
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References
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Wattenberg, Martin P. (1986).The Decline of American Political Parties, 1952–1984. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
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Wattenberg, M.P. Do voters really care about political parties anymore? A response to Craig. Polit Behav 9, 114–125 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987301
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987301