Political Inequality and the U.S. Presidential Elections of 2012

Let’s start by defining power and power inequality

Power is a relational concept, meaning that it characterizes the relationship between two or more entities.

Power is the capacity one has to realize one’s will despite the resistance of others (Weber), or A gets B to do something that B did not want to do (Dahl).

How is power inequality defined?There are two schools of thought:

Power Resource Distribution Approach:

Power inequality refers to structured differences in the distribution and acquisition of power resources.

-- “Power resources” is used to describe any resources used in the exercise of power. Potentially anything can be used as a power resource. -- Resources are distributed unequally. -- Assumes power is an attribute of people; it is something one person/group has.

Interdependency Approach:Power inequality is when one person or group realizes their will despite the resistance of others more often than others, and more often than not.

-- Power is an attribute only of relationships, not people.-- There is no set of “power resources” that are fixed across all interactions. -- Resources can take the form of anything actors can do within an interaction. -- The nature of the interdependent relationship reveals the types of actions (resources) available to each participant. -- Power inequality occurs when one group does not use the resources at their disposal.

What is POLITICAL inequality?

In the distributional approach, political inequality refers to structured differences in the distribution and acquisition of political resources.

In the interdependenceinterdependence approach, political inequality is when one person or group influences government legislation and policy more often than others, and more often than not.

Let us define political inequality this way:

Political inequality is the extent to which groups differ in influence over decisions made by decision-making bodies.

Democracy and Political Inequality

„Ninety-five (95) projects are listed, each of which establish, or heavily rely on, a particular index of governance across [ten]categories.” They list 52 publications on „democracy.”

1 democracy 

2 elections 

3 press freedom 

4 human rights 

5 state fragility 

6 corruption 

7 rule of law 

8 delivery of services 

9 business and labor climate 

10 economic freedom

Peter Nardulli: „I think I am on the polar opposite of most here about where we should go in the future...”

Dani Kaufmann: „Let’s be realistic. Tomorrow there will be consensus on what democracy really is?”

Tom Melia: I certainly understand better why some of you are disappointed with some aspects of the [Freedom House] surveys...

Melissa Thomas: „These indicators have a really [big] impact. Hundreds of millions of $ spent in aid based on them.”

American Political Science Association Task Force on Inequality and American Democracy (2004): Ideals of democracy “may be under growing threat in an era of persistent and rising inequalities.” APSA Task Force identified three main dimensions of political inequality: (1) citizen voice, (2) government responsiveness in terms of decision-making, and (3) patterns of public policy making.

Benjamin R. Barber, University of Maryland-College Park

Larry M. Bartels, Princeton University

Michael C. Dawson, Harvard University

Morris Fiorina, Stanford University

Jacob S. Hacker, Yale University Hugh Heclo, George Mason

University Rodney E. Hero, University of

Notre Dame

Lawrence R. Jacobs, University of Minnesota, Chair

Claire Jean Kim, University of California-Irvine

Suzanne B. Mettler, Syracuse University Benjamin I. Page, Northwestern University

Dianne M. Pinderhughes, University of Notre Dame

Kay Lehman Schlozman, Boston College Theda Skocpol, Harvard University

APSA Task Force Committee

POLITICAL INEQUALITY

VOICE RESPONSE

Participation Representation

Electoral Non-Electoral

Symbolic Policy

Formal InformalGovernment Non-Governmental

TEA PARTYest. 2009

OCCUPY WALL

STREETest. 2011