Nathan J. Kelly and Jana Morgan. 2021 “Hurdles to Shared Prosperity: Congress, Parties, and the National Policy Process in an Era of Inequality.” In The American Political Economy: Politics, Markets, and Power, Jacob S. Hacker, Alexander Hertel-Fernandez, Paul Pierson, and Kathleen Thelen, eds. Cambridge University Press, pp. 51-75. (Peer reviewed)

Abstract: This chapter brings a substantive political economy perspective to understand how structural inequalities in the American system interact with legislative institutions in ways that advantage wealthy interests. We argue that the design of American political institutions is biased toward economic elites by contributing to policy stagnation that permits the persistence of policies perpetuating elite advantages while also enabling policy actions that exacerbate inequality. Several decades of data show that income inequality and policy stagnation are strongly associated over time, that the effect of stagnation on inequality becomes increasingly inegalitarian as inequality widens, and that less redistribute policy action occurs as the income gap widens. We also discuss how major policy change is most likely to be accomplished when it favors economic elites by discussing how inequality-exacerbating financial deregulation overcame partisan gridlock while at the same time working-class Americans have suffered from damaging policy stagnation in an era of rising inequality.

Nathan J. Kelly and Jana Morgan. 2018. “Democracy that Excludes: Persistent Inequalities and the Future of Democratic Governance” In Emerging Trends in the Social and Behavioral Sciences, Robert A. Scott and Marlis C. Buchmann, eds. Wiley. (Editor reviewed)

Abstract: Democracy is often reduced to the presence of a particular set of institutional rules and practices. We argue that democracy also implies a promise of more just outcomes, and we define systems that are institutionally democratic but fail to fully incorporate all citizens as exclusionary democracies. We argue here that the practice of exclusionary democracy may produce broad and mostly negative implications for the future of democratic governance. In particular, we explore how variation in political and economic exclusion in institutionally democratic states may shape a variety of political attitudes and behavior, including political participation, democratic values, tolerance, and trust in government.

Jana Morgan and Magda Hinojosa. 2018. “Women in Political Parties: Seen but Not Heard” In Gender and Representation in Latin America, Leslie Schwindt-Bayer, ed. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 74-98. (Peer reviewed) 

Abstract: This chapter begins with a discussion of causes, the factors that shape women’s representation within and by political parties. Using 2009 data from all major parties in eighteen Latin American countries, the chapter presents data on women’s representation within parties (as leaders and within women’s wings) and by parties (as candidates and officeholders). Moreover, the chapter discusses how women’s descriptive representation is shaped by parties’ candidate selection procedures, including voluntary party-based gender quotas and legislated national quotas, which alter these nomination procedures. The chapter then analyzes women’s substantive representation through parties, drawing on evidence from expert surveys, party manifestos, and public opinion data concerning party attachments. Here we evaluate the extent to which parties advocate for women’s issues and employ strategies aimed at incorporating women’s concerns in the political process. The findings suggest that few Latin American parties prioritize or even maintain organizational ties to women’s groups, and women’s concerns rarely figure prominently in party platforms. We also consider the extent to which and mechanisms through which women connect to political parties, finding that women are much less likely to identify with parties than men, even after controlling for a wide array of factors that might be expected to contribute to this gap. The chapter concludes by discussing the challenges women face regarding their full incorporation by and within political parties and suggesting some steps parties might take to promote women’s representation.

Jana Morgan. 2018. “Deterioration and Polarization of Party Politics in Venezuela.” In Party Systems in Latin America: Institutionalization, Decay and Collapse. Scott Mainwaring, ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, pp. 291-325. (Peer reviewed) 

Abstract: The collapse of the traditional party system in Venezuela has had dramatic consequences for the nature and structure of partisan competition and politics more broadly. While previously marginalized groups have found new voice and programmatic options are now available across the ideological spectrum, collapse has also aggravated social and political conflict, heightened personalism, disrupted the predictability and routinization of party organizations, and undermined liberal democratic institutions. As chavismo has encountered escalating inflation, serious shortages, and depleted resources due to evaporating oil revenues, mismanagement and corruption, the movement’s seemingly unassailable position appears vulnerable and increasingly overt power grabs that go beyond the bounds of democratic practice tarnish its image.

Jana Morgan. 2015. “Gender and the Latin American Voter.” In The Latin American Voter, eds. Ryan E. Carlin, Matthew M. Singer and Elizabeth J. Zechmeister. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, pp. 143-167. (Peer reviewed) 

Abstract: Gender gaps in vote choice are an important focus of study in advanced democracies where traditional gender gaps in public attitudes have gradually given way to modern ones. But gender differences in these areas have received considerably less attention outside established democracies. The small body of existing scholarship that has focused on developing democracies suggests such countries may persist in manifesting traditional gender gaps on these important outcomes. However findings from the United States and Europe hint that this pattern might be in transition, particularly in contexts where the importance of religion has receded, more women experience personal autonomy, or female economic empowerment is more widespread. This chapter assesses the current status of gender gaps across Latin America. The evidence suggests that small traditional gender gaps in vote choice persist in the region, and modern gender gaps are still largely absent. The chapter explores how individual characteristics and attitudes as well as party system features and social structures shape the nature of the gender gap in vote choice. The chapter concludes by analyzing the factors that shape the decision to vote for female presidential candidates, finding that women as well as people living in countries with greater gender equality are more likely to support women in their efforts to reach the highest elected office.