Appalachia and American Politics.

Despite recent news media attention, Appalachia - historically a culturally and politically unique region of the United States - has been effectively ignored by contemporary political scientists. This paper provides a systematic assessment of Appalachian distinctiveness in public opinion and political behavior in the 21st century. Using a unique set of variables coded specifically for this project, I argue Appalachian whites remain particularly resistant to a range of issues related to different aspects of modernization, both economic and cultural. This is partly explained in some cases by differential impacts of certain standard demographic and political variables like education and partisan identification in Appalachia relative to the rest of the country. The strongest variation emerges in the Central Appalachian counties of eastern Kentucky and its border states, where the greatest economic and educational disparities remain even today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]