This book examines how the Democratic party tried to construct a winning electoral coalition between 1877 and 1962. It argues that there was a much greater continuity in the elements of the Democratic coalition from one era to another than is usually believed.
This is the first major study of the origins of direct primary elections in the US since the 1920s. It shows the direct primary was the result of an effort, starting in the late 1880s, by mainstream party politicians.