Partisan Polarization and the Evolution of Government Interest Groups

• In Event: Putting State Policy in Context: Federalism, Polarization, and Populism

Abstract

Growing partisan polarization at both the national and state level is well documented. From V.O. Key’s (1956) discussion to more recent examinations of polarization in Congress, in state legislatures, and among voters, there is consistent evidence of both this polarization and the effects of this polarization on government functioning and policy outcomes. This paper examines how the growing party polarization among officeholders at both the federal and state level has effected state and local government interest groups. I use evidence from recent in-depth interviews and other sources to examine how public official associations – those associations of officials such as governors, mayors, and county officials – have responded to increased polarization among their members and in the larger political environment. In some (but not all) cases, these organizations have altered their both their organizational maintenance efforts as well as their advocacy efforts; in some (but again, not all) cases, they have altered their organizational structures; in one notable case, partisan polarization played a significant role in the dissolution of a well-established public official association. I draw on interest group theory to identify what led to shifts by some organizations but not others. This paper contributes to our understanding of interest groups, public official organizations, and partisan polarization by analyzing interest organization changes over time.

Author

• Jennifer M. Jensen, Lehigh University