Are Changing Constituencies Driving Rising Polarization in the U.S. House of Representatives?

This report addresses two questions: first, whether the spatial distribution of the American electorate has become more geographically clustered over the last 40 years with respect to party voting and socioeconomic attributes; and second, whether this clustering process has contributed to rising polarization in the U.S. House of Representatives. Title Page; Copyright; Preface; Contents; Figures; Tables; Summary; Acknowledgments; Abbreviations; Chapter One: Introduction; Chapter Two: Is Partisan Geographic Clustering of the American Electorate a Reality?; The Big Sort: Concepts and Critiques; Re-Reconsidering the Clustering Question; Chapter Three: Is Geographic Clustering of Voters Driving Rising Polarization in Congress?; Method 1: The Regression Discontinuity Model; Method 2: The Rescaling Model; Method 3: The Multistage Model; Findings; Chapter Four: Discussion and Conclusion; Appendix: Notes and Technical Methods; References