Representative Democracy

Mezey has produced a broadly-informed study that speaks to all interested in representative democracy. Furthermore, it is an accessible and appropriate text for teaching undergraduates, especially for courses on Congress, comparative legislatures, or democratic governance. APSA Legislative Studies Section Newsletter, Book Notes Mezey displays his treasure of scholarly talents in this concise yet inclusive book on representation. He gives order and meaning to a wide array of existing empirical and normative literature on the concept of representation across a range of representative institutions, blending an emphasis on the U.S. Congress with findings from non-American legislatures that make the reader keenly sensitive to contextual variation. -- Bruce Oppenheimer, Vanderbilt University Michael Mezey has written a comprehensive analysis of the complex relationship between constituents and legislators in the United States, and in comparative perspective. It is based on his astonishing command of the relevant literature. Far more than a textbook, it makes a valuable contribution to all scholars in this field by offering an overview that integrates and organizes the accumulated findings of three decades of legislative research. -- Gerhard Loewenberg University Of Iowa Mezey has written a well-documented and clearly laid out book. A]n appropriate text for upper-division undergraduate or survey graduate courses that examine legislative politics and/or political representation... [I]t draws together key components of representation in a valuable manner... Political Science Quarterly, Fall 2009 I can think of no one more qualified than Mezey to write a synthetic treatment of representative institutions since he combines a theoretician's reflectiveness with an empiricist's analytical acumen; a comparativist's breadth of perspective with a Congress scholar's utilization of an impressively wide range of data. The chapter on "Earmarks and Errands" alone is worth the purchase price. -- John R. Hibbing, University of Nebraska Mezey has written a well-documented and clearly laid out book. A]n appropriate text for upper-division undergraduate or survey graduate courses that examine legislative politics and/or political representation... [I]t draws together key components of representation in a valuable manner. Political Science Quarterly, Fall 2009