Abstract
This article describes a field experiment designed to test the efficacy of get-out-the-vote (GOTV) techniques in a new context and for an understudied population. It evaluates the effectiveness of nonpartisan GOTV messages delivered via personal contact and mail in a heavily Latino community during the 2004 presidential campaign. It proposes and tests an alternative model of voter turnout based on Zaller's receive-accept-sample model of public opinion. The findings are consistent with the authors' predictions; mobilization efforts increase turnout, but mobilization effects vary across citizens based on their propensity to vote. There is a large increase among episodic voters but little increase among habitual or registered nonvoters.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 192-205 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | Political Research Quarterly |
Volume | 65 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 2012 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- elections and voting behavior
- ethnicity
- political methodology
- politics
- public opinion and political participation
- race
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Sociology and Political Science