About the Author

Jay K. Dow is professor of political science at the University of Missouri, Columbia. His research on electoral politics has appeared in publications including the British Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, Electoral Studies, Public Choice, and Political Behavior.

Reviews

"Those interested in the evolution of SMDs for the U.S. House elections will consult Professor Dow's Electing the House for years to come."--Congress & the Presidency[Dow's] tracing of the evolution of single-member districts and rationale for challenging demands for other electoral options is invaluable."--Choice

"Jay Dow employs skill, care, and a range of intellectual tools to masterfully explain how each member of the U.S. House of Representatives came to be selected by voters in unique districts. He makes a constructive and persuasive case that these single member districts are vital for the American experiment in republican government."--David Brian Robertson, author of The Original Compromise: What the Constitution's Framers Were Really Thinking"Electing the House addresses several important questions related to the creation, development, institutionalization, and consequences of single member districts (SMD). Jay Dow shows that this critical feature of the US electoral system is best understood through a historical developmental approach that includes a blend of Founding ideas, institutions, social and political changes, and strategic choices. The book contributes mightily to the American political development (APD) literature on Congress, debates over the vitality of the American electoral system, and congressional reform."--Daniel Palazzolo, professor of political science, University of Richmond "This spirited defense of single-member districts (SMD) in the U.S. House reminds us "there is no perfect way of electing a representative assembly." Grounded in the central debates of American political development and normative democratic theory, Jay Dow carefully elucidates the tradeoffs across systems while arguing that SMDs provide a uniquely American balance between liberalism and republicanism."--David Canon, professor of political science, University of Wisconsin-Madison