Follow the Leader?: How Voters Respond to Politicians' Policies and Performance

In a democracy, we have come to assume that people know the policies they prefer and elect like-minded officials who are responsible for carrying them out. But does this actually happen? Do citizens consider candidates' policy positions when deciding whom they'll vote for? And how do politicians' performances in office factor into the voting decision? In Follow the Leader?, Gabriel S. Lenz sheds light on these central questions surrounding democratic thought. Lenz looks at citizens' views on candidates both before and after periods of political upheaval, including campaigns, wars, natural disasters, and episodes of economic boom and bust. Noting important shifts in voters' preferences as a result of these…