Republican Contestation Of U. S. State Senate Elections In the South.

This paper examines the Republican emergence in the South by analyzing the level of state senate elections the Republicans contest. The goal of this paper is to assess the measurable changes in the Republican southern strategy for contesting elections in the Reagan era. I find that Republican contestation in state senate elections has diffused into the rural areas during the Reagan era. In addition, the Republicans are increasingly contesting elections based on the incumbency status of the seat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]