Where Is “the South”? Assessing the Meaning of Geography in Politics

Abstract

The use of geographic classifications to make empirical or theoretical generalizations is common in political science research. Yet, in most cases, these groupings, in and of themselves, lack broader meaning. Offering an in-depth example of the American South, this study demonstrates the need to scrutinize the qualities we are actually interested in when using geographic classifications to explore political trends. The article begins by discussing the many ways that “the South” has been defined in the existing literature. Then, it evaluates the theoretical and empirical consequences of these various definitions using examples focused on discriminatory practices, voter turnout, and civil rights roll call votes. This evidence demonstrates the importance of grounding one’s definition in substantive metrics and historical context over and beyond basic geography. The study concludes with a discussion of its broader implications that apply to several topics of interest and research strategies.

Intraparty Republican Factionalism as Identity in the Modern American South

“…To answer our three primary research questions and test our hypotheses, we rely on an original survey of 2275 (weighted) respondents in the American South, who took part in the 2022 Southern Focus Survey administered by Winthrop University. Although there are a multitude of potential definitions for the South (Cooper & Knotts, 2017; Springer, 2019), we limit the region to the 11 former Confederate states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Respondents were drawn from a curated panel purchased from Marketing Systems Group and the sample was weighted by race, gender, and age from each state surveyed (e.g., not the country as a whole) based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau.…”

The South in American Political Development

“…The role of southern unity is developed most explicitly in the work of Ira Katznelson, including a series of coauthored articles and books (Bateman et al 2018, Farhang & Katznelson 2005, Katznelson et al 1993, Katznelson & Mulroy 2012, as well as his field-defining Fear Itself (2013). For starters, Katznelson and coauthors have defined the South expansively (Springer 2019) to include all 17 states on whose territory slavery was established by local legislation or practice, and which mandated segregated schools at the time of Brown v. Board. "The South," write Katznelson & Mulroy (2012, p. 607), "composed a long-standing compulsory racial order of white supremacy" (see also Degler 1977, p. 125).…”