A project of doubtful utility: measuring legislative opposition to the Pennsylvania Canal |
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Authors: | Francis P Boscoe |
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Institution: | Department of Geography, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA |
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Abstract: | A spatial model of legislative roll call votes is used to examine the debate surrounding the decision to build a canal across Pennsylvania in 1826. The model reveals a sharp polarization between the English and German-speaking regions of the state, with marked splits over the establishment and funding of the Pennsylvania Canal and other fiscal issues. Representatives from the German-speaking regions consistently opposed all spending initiatives. This regional split, underappreciated by geographers and historians, provides evidence in support of a broader positioning of culture and ethnicity in the study of political behavior. The model itself provides a novel means of analyzing and assessing geographically based voting blocs. |
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Keywords: | Roll call analysis Pennsylvania Germans Canal era Government programs |
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