PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Divisive primaries help challengers and hurt incumbents

2010-09-24
(Press-News.org) Los Angeles, CA (Sept 23, 2010) Divisive primaries may waste precious campaign resources and damage the primary winner's reputation and chances to win the general election, according to a study in the current American Politics Research (published by SAGE). The timing of the primary in proximity to the general election can also play a role in the results.

To test the effects of divisive primary battles on general election outcomes, researchers gathered primary and general election vote data for all incumbent House races between 1972 and 1998 in which both parties held a primary contest. They looked at when those primary elections were held, from early in the spring to those held less than two months before the general election.

Research found that divisive primaries held very early in the electoral calendar did not affect general election performance. Those held after mid-April, however, had a negative and statistically significant impact on the results. This negative effect became more pronounced the closer the primary was to the general election.

Voters seem to weigh recent information more heavily than distant events. Additionally, late-season primaries leave challengers with little time to refill campaign coffers, assuage the hurt feelings of the losing primary opponent's supporters, and repair the negativity generated by the divisive primary.

"Our findings have important implications for parties, candidates, and reformers," write the authors, Gregg B. Johnson, Meredith-Joy Petersheim and Jesse T. Wasson. "We conclude that although electoral prospects matter, fiercely contested primaries waste resources and lead to reputational costs, which primary winners need time to overcome. Greater attention to this and perhaps even an exploration of the relationship between candidate quality and divisive primaries appears warranted."

INFORMATION:

The article "Divisive Primaries and Incumbent General Election Performance: Prospects and Costs in U.S. House Races," in American Politics Research is available free for a limited time at http://apr.sagepub.com/content/38/5/931.full.pdf+html.

Contact lead author Gregg B. Johnson at Gregg.Johnson@valpo.edu.

American Politics Research has published original works concerned with the latest theory, research and analyses in American political science for more than 30 years. Articles from distinguished authors in a wide range of fields, examine and explore topics in every area of government, from local and state to regional and national. http://apr.sagepub.com

SAGE is a leading international publisher of journals, books, and electronic media for academic, educational, and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students spanning a wide range of subject areas including business, humanities, social sciences, and science, technology, and medicine. An independent company, SAGE has principal offices in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC. www.sagepublications.com

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

UCLA cancer researchers discover new signaling pathway that controls cell development and cancer

2010-09-24
Researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have discovered a new cell signaling pathway that controls cell growth and development, a pathway that, when defective, helps promote the formation of several major forms of human cancer, including lymphoma and leukemia. The new pathway, part of a global DNA damage response, turns off 136 genes, including some that have are known to cause cancer because, unchecked, they can promote aberrant cell division. "It's important to make sure this pathway works correctly, because it prevents cells from dividing excessively" ...

Magnetic power offers energy-saving alternative

2010-09-24
The Office of Naval Research Global (ONR Global) continues to pursue aggressive energy goals established by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, with the design of a system that controls electrical flow for lighting, a highly efficient platform that may spark a new era of power savings. Designed by the Tokyo Institute of Technology and fine-tuned by researchers at MERSTech in partnership with the ONR Global's office in Tokyo, the Magnetic Energy Recovery Switch (MERS) harnesses and recycles residual magnetic power that is produced by electrical current. By using a device ...

A drug against AIDS could be effective against the herpes virus

A drug against AIDS could be effective against the herpes virus
2010-09-24
Scientists at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) headed by the coordinator of the Structural and Computational Biology Programme, Miquel Coll, have published a new study that demonstrates that raltegravir, the drug approved in 2007 for the treatment of AIDS that is sold by Merck under the name Isentress, cancels the function of an essential protein for the replication of one kind of herpes virus. This study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), is the first step towards the development of a drug against ...

Study reveals stress hormone impacts on alcohol recovery

2010-09-24
Scientists at the University of Liverpool have found that high levels of a stress hormone in recovering alcoholics could increase the risk of relapse. The study showed that cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal gland in response to stress, is found in high levels in chronic alcoholics, as well as those recovering from the condition. Researchers found that this could result in impaired memory, attention and decision-making functions, which could decrease the patient's ability to engage with treatment. Chronic alcoholism is a disabling addictive disorder, characterised ...

Psychotropic medication and youth in foster care report

2010-09-24
Boston, MA - The Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) today issued a landmark report from a multi-state study on psychotropic medication oversight in foster care. Led by Laurel K. Leslie, MD, MPH at Tufts CTSI, Christopher Bellonci, MD at Tufts Medical Center and Justeen Hyde, PhD at Cambridge Health Alliance, the study examined state policies and practices in 47 states, including Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia regarding the use of medication for treating behavioral and mental health problems in foster care children and adolescents ages ...

Anger amplifies clinical pain in women with and without fibromyalgia

2010-09-24
Researchers from Utrecht University who studied the effect of negative emotions on pain perception in women with and without fibromyalgia found that anger and sadness amplified pain equally in both groups. Full findings are now online and will publish in the October print issue of Arthritis Care & Research, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology. Fibromyalgia (FM), a chronic pain condition, has among the largest impact of all rheumatic and chronic pain conditions. In addition to chronic, widespread pain, patients report accompanying symptoms such as fatigue, ...

City living helped humans evolve immunity to TB

2010-09-24
New research has found that a genetic variant which reduces the chance of contracting diseases such as tuberculosis and leprosy is more prevalent in populations with long histories of urban living. The research, published in the journal Evolution, shows that in areas with a long history of urban settlements, today's inhabitants are more likely to possess the genetic variant which provides resistance to infection. In ancient cities, poor sanitation and high population densities would have provided an ideal breeding ground for the spread of disease. Natural selection ...

New map offers a global view of health-sapping air pollution

2010-09-24
In many developing countries, the absence of surface-based air pollution sensors makes it difficult, and in some cases impossible, to get even a rough estimate of the abundance of a subcategory of airborne particles that epidemiologists suspect contributes to millions of premature deaths each year. The problematic particles, called fine particulate matter (PM2.5), are 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter, about a tenth the fraction of human hair. These small particles can get past the body's normal defenses and penetrate deep into the lungs. To fill in these gaps in surface-based ...

Wheat researchers combine forces to battle major disease

2010-09-24
AMARILLO - Wheat streak mosaic virus is the most prevalent disease in the southwestern wheat producing region of the U.S., according to a Texas AgriLife Research scientist. Dr. Charlie Rush, AgriLife Research plant pathologist in Amarillo, is assembling several teams of scientists to work on the disease from every aspect: vector to diagnosis and mapping to control. "There are other diseases of concern, but wheat streak mosaic is always found somewhere in this wheat growing region, and every couple of years, we have an epidemic of it," Rush said. Several issues cause ...

Genetic switch underlies noisy cell division

2010-09-24
DURHAM, N.C. – While scientists have spent the past 40 years describing the intricate series of events that occur when one mammalian cell divides into two, they still haven't agreed on how the process begins. There are two seemingly contradictory theories, which now may be reconciled by a third theory being proposed by Duke University bioengineer Lingchong You. These findings could provide insights into the initiation of disease, such as cancer, which is marked by uncontrolled cell proliferation. During proliferation, the DNA within the nucleus of a cell makes a copy ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Study shows increasing ‘healthy competition’ between menu options nudges patients towards greener, lower-fat hospital food choices

New insights into melanoma plasticity uncover a critical role of iron metabolism

A graphene sandwich — deposited or transferred?

New light-powered motor fits inside a strand of hair

Oil rig study reveals vital role of tiny hoverflies

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia researchers boost widespread use of dental varnish across pediatric network

iRECODE: A new computational method that brings clarity to single-cell analysis

New NUS-MOH study: Singapore’s healthcare sector carbon emissions 18% lower than expected, a milestone in the city-state’s net zero journey

QUT scientists create material to turn waste heat into clean power

Major new report sets out how to tackle the ‘profound and lasting impact’ of COVID-19 on cardiovascular health

Cosmic crime scene: White dwarf found devouring Pluto-like icy world

Major report tackles Covid’s cardiovascular crisis head-on

A third of licensed GPs in England not working in NHS general practice

ChatGPT “thought on the fly” when put through Ancient Greek maths puzzle

Engineers uncover why tiny particles form clusters in turbulent air

GLP-1RA drugs dramatically reduce death and cardiovascular risk in psoriasis patients

Psoriasis linked to increased risk of vision-threatening eye disease, study finds

Reprogramming obesity: New drug from Italian biotech aims to treat the underlying causes of obesity

Type 2 diabetes may accelerate development of multiple chronic diseases, particularly in the early stages, UK Biobank study suggests

Resistance training may improve nerve health, slow aging process, study shows

Common and inexpensive medicine halves the risk of recurrence in patients with colorectal cancer

SwRI-built instruments to monitor, provide advanced warning of space weather events

Breakthrough advances sodium-based battery design

New targeted radiation therapy shows near-complete response in rare sarcoma patients

Does physical frailty contribute to dementia?

Soccer headers and brain health: Study finds changes within folds of the brain

Decoding plants’ language of light

UNC Greensboro study finds ticks carrying Lyme disease moving into western NC

New implant restores blood pressure balance after spinal cord injury

New York City's medical specialist advantage may be an illusion, new NYU Tandon research shows

[Press-News.org] Divisive primaries help challengers and hurt incumbents