AMERICAN POLITICS & PUBLIC POLICY WORKSHOP
While studies of representation often focus on policy congruence between voters and elites, the relationship between the two sets of actors is not limited to ideological alignment. By partaking in home styles that highlight their most favorable attributes, members of Congress attempt to alter the dimensions of
representation on which they are evaluated. In this paper I build upon previous theories to explore how the legislator’s presentation of self affects not only the voter’s evaluation of the representative, but also the importance of the non-policy evaluation of the legislator. Using original data from The American Panel Survey, I find that even in the current polarized environment, traditional theories of non-policy representation still play a major role in constituent evaluations of legislators.
Patrick Tucker is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Institution for Social and Policy Studies and the Center for the Study of American Politics. His research interests are broadly related to American politics, with specific interests in representation, public opinion, Congress, and the stability of political attitudes.
Cosponsored by the Institution for Social and Policy Studies and the Center for the Study of American Politics.