This text covers all aspects of the electoral process from historical roots to election year 2000. This new edition is revised and updated, and includes data from the 1996 presidential election, the 1996 and 1998 congressional and statewide elections, and the early phase of the 2000 presidential election. Examples are drawn from races throughout America, tables and figures illustrate important points, and there is a comprehensive reference list. The book combines the perspective of political science and research with an outlook from the real world of politics. Each chapter opens with a contemporary campaign vinaigrette, concludes with "A Politician's View" and incorporates many examples of practitioner politics in between.