Strategy, Rules and Participation: Issue Activists in Republican National Convention Delegations, 1976-1996

Abstract

Social conservatives' strength in Republican national convention delegations has grown substantially over the past twenty years. This note demonstrates that this growth varied systematically across states depending on the combination of activist strategies and opportunities afforded by delegate selection rules. Using aggregate Republican convention data analysis from 1976-1996, and GLS regression analyses of state delegation data from 1984-1996, 1 test the impact of rules on the makeup of Republican delegations, and whether that effect has changed over time. I find that delegations from states with procedures which allow influence from the grassroots were more likely to have a high number of social conservative issue activists. This effect was first apparent in 1992, and continued in 1996. The opposite was true for socially liberal group activists.