Political Science

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/11274/15381

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    Germany’s PDS: Between East and West
    (International Institute of Political Science, 2002) Olsen, Jonathan
    As with other communist successor parties, Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) enjoyed a political comeback in the mid-1990s. The PDS's success can be explained by many eastern German voters' disenchantment with the social, cultural, and economic effects of reunification as well as by the distinctive regional and fragmented character of the German Political Party System that allows the PDS, as the self-proclaimed defender of "eastern interests," disproportionate political influence. The PDS is faced with a dilemma, however. In the long-term it will have to become a true all-German party of the left if it wishes to survive electorally. Yet in becoming an all-German party the PDS risks losing the distinctive eastern identity that has been so essential to its success hitherto.
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    The Alternative for Germany (AFD) as populist issue entrepreneur: Explaining the party and its voters in the 2021 German federal election
    (Taylor & Francis, 2022) Hansen, Michael A.; Olsen, Jonathan
    This article analyses the vote for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the 2021German Federal Election. Using the German Longitudinal Election Study (GLES),we confirm some findings from previous studies, above all that attitudinal variables–including anti-immigrant ideology–are much stronger predictors of the AfD vote than socio-demographic variables. Moreover, we uncover three new findings in relation to vote choice for the AfD. First, anti-EU attitudes had a positive, statistically significant impact on AfD vote choice in2021. Second, negative attitudes towards political elites increased the probability of voting for the AfD. Third, and perhaps most important, dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic was positively related to voting for the AfD. Given these results, we argue here that the AfD has become something of a populist 'issue entrepreneur' which, while exploiting existing niches in the electoral marketplace (the EU and migration), is finding new issues to tap and exploit.
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    Texas Government- Chapter 12, Section 3: Texas-sized Challenge
    (Globalyceum, 2019) Danley-Scott, Jennifer
    While Texas has many problems to face, few are as pressing as natural disasters. Climate change, zoning, building codes, and urban sprawl combine to create deadly scenarios where increased weather volatility is causing death and property damage. Texans approach the weather with a shrug, noting, “If you don’t like the weather, just wait a few minutes. It’ll change.” Yet weather causes great damage due to decisions made by developers, governments, and people. As the residents of coastal Texas experienced in 2017 with Hurricane Harvey, current government policy may not be adequate. To meet that need, Texas planning and emergency management policy are currently undergoing massive changes in an effort to keep citizens, businesses, and properties safe in the future. Focus Questions: What is the difference between recovery and resilience? Who declares disasters and evacuations in Texas? What must a governor do to receive disaster assistance from the US government? How have local government plans changed, post Hurricane Harvey?