When to Risk It? Institutions, Ambitions, and the Decision to Run for the U.S. House

The health of any democratic system depends on political ambition to generate a steady supply of quality candidates for office. Because most models of candidate entry assume ambition rather than model it, previous research fails to understand its roots in individual and institutional characteristics...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American political science review 2006-05, Vol.100 (2), p.195-208
Main Authors: MAESTAS, CHERIE D., FULTON, SARAH, MAISEL, L. SANDY, STONE, WALTER J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ambition
Aspiration
Bills
Candidates
Careers
Competition
Congressional elections
Elections
Incumbents
Individual Characteristics
Institutional Characteristics
Institutionalism
Legislators
Legislatures
Occupational Aspiration
Occupational Mobility
Opportunities
Parliament
Political campaigns
Political candidates
Political parties
Political psychology
Political science
Political systems
Politics
Probabilities
Professionalism
State elections
State legislators
State Surveys
Survey data
Term limitations
U.S.A
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Summary:The health of any democratic system depends on political ambition to generate a steady supply of quality candidates for office. Because most models of candidate entry assume ambition rather than model it, previous research fails to understand its roots in individual and institutional characteristics. We develop a two-stage model of progressive behavior that distinguishes between the formation of ambition for higher office and the decision to enter a particular race. Using data from a survey of state legislators, we demonstrate that the intrinsic costs and benefits associated with running for and holding higher office shape ambitions but do not influence the decision to run. For progressively ambitious legislators, the second-stage decision is a strategic choice about when to run rather than whether to run. Our research highlights how institutional characteristics that foster progressive ambition also increase the likelihood that national or local political conditions will be translated into meaningful choices at the ballot box.
ISSN:0003-0554
1537-5943
DOI:10.1017/S0003055406062101