Give Me Liberty!

by Gerry Spence

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Student Question

How did divisive political partisanship affect the 2000 election in Give Me Liberty! chapter 27?

Quick answer:

Divisive political partisanship significantly impacted the 2000 election, as highlighted in Give Me Liberty! by Eric Foner. The election followed President Clinton's impeachment, exacerbating the nation's partisan divide. Foner notes the country was almost evenly split, with Bush and Gore each securing about half of the popular vote. The division was largely geographical, with Bush dominating the South and rural areas, while Gore excelled in urban regions and among minorities and female voters.

Expert Answers

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In the 2004 edition of Eric Foner's textbook, Give Me Liberty!, the subsection on the 2000 presidential election begins on page 959. This election occurred in the aftermath of President Clinton's impeachment, described in the previous subsection, which had heightened the partisan divide in the country.

On page 960, Foner begins the subsection "The 2000 Result" by pointing out that "the most remarkable thing about the 2000 election was not so much its controversial ending as the even division of the country it revealed." Foner points out that Bush and Gore each got about half of the popular vote, indicating that the country was very much a divided one.

Foner goes into more detail about this on the next page. He explains how the partisan division was largely a geographical one.

Bush carried the entire South and nearly all the states of the Trans-Mississippi farm belt and the Rockies. Gore won almost all the states of the Northeast, Old Nothwest, and West Coast.

The text goes on to explain how Gore did very well overall in urban areas and with racial minorities while Bush won most rural votes and was more popular among white voters. Furthermore, the majority of female voters cast their ballots for Gore while Bush was much more popular among male voters. By examining the demographics in this election, it became possible to see where the American partisan divide was.

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