ABSTRACT OUR YOUNG ELECTED OFFICIALS by Bradley Steven
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ABSTRACT OUR YOUNG ELECTED OFFICIALS by Bradley Steven Mascho In the year 2000, seventy-nine percent of Americans were younger than the average member of Congress. For decades the average member of Congress has been above the age of fifty, yet we continue to send rare young members to represent our districts. Across America and spanning our history, young people hold positions of influence. This work is the culmination of extensive interviews and questionnaires with twenty notable political figures elected to office at politically “young” ages. Included in this work are comments from three State Representatives, one Governor, thirteen members of the United States House of Representatives, and three United States Senators. After more than three hours of interviews and eleven questionnaires, the influence of youth in politics will be addressed here. Their comments point not to a revolution of youthful involvement but rather a sustained influence on American politics. OUR YOUNG ELECTED OFFICIALS A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Miami University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Political Science by Bradley Steven Mascho Miami University Oxford, Ohio 2003 Advisor _________________ Ryan J. Barilleaux Reader _________________ Augustus J. Jones, Jr. Reader _________________ Richard G. Forgette c. Bradley Steven Mascho 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables, v Dedication, vi Acknowledgements, vii PART ONE 1 Introduction, 1 PART TWO 3 Defining the “young politician”, 3 PART THREE 8 Who Are You?, 8 Background, 8 Ancestry, 13 Family, 16 PART FOUR 19 The Elections, 19 PART FIVE 27 The Affect of Age, 27 PART SIX 30 Advice from the Winner’s Circle, 30 Conslusion, 35 PART SEVEN 37 Appendixes and charts, 37 A. Impact of Age, 38 B. Family Impact, 39 C. Professional History, 40 D. Personal History, 41 E. Constituency Information, 43 PART EIGHT 44 Biographies and Interview Responses, 44 Sherrod Brown, 45 David Dreier, 53 Jesse Jackson, Jr., 61 James Langevin, 74 Blanche Lincoln, 83 Adam Putnam, 92 Paul Ryan, 101 Derrick Seaver, 111 Adam Smith, 121 iii PART NINE 131 Questionnaires, 131 Jeb Bardon, 132 Joseph Crowley, 136 Tom Daschle, 140 Cleo Fields, 144 Virgil Goode, 148 Gene Green, 152 Mark Kruzan, 156 Martin Olav Sabo, 160 Bob Schaffer, 164 John Sununu, 168 Jane Swift, 172 PART TEN 176 Additional Appendixes and Charts, 176 F. Age of Unites States House Members 1980-2002, 177 G. Age of Unites States Senate Members 1980-2002, 194 H. Election Results: Auglaize, Champaign, and Shelby Counties, 197 Bibliography 199 iv LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Newly elected U.S. House members 1980-2002 4 Table 2. Age of New U.S. House Members at First Election 4 Table 3. Age of New U.S. House Members in Ranges 5 Table 4. Age of New U.S. House Members in Percentages 5 Table 5. Newly elected U.S. Senate members 1980-2002 6 Table 6. Age of New U.S. Senate Members in Ranges 6 Table 7. Age of New U.S. Senate Members in Percentages 7 Table 8. Individual Election Information 19 v DEDICATION To Jennifer, with love and thanks. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In preparing this work I have used the words and wisdom of numerous obliging figures. From professors to politicians, there are many to thank. This thesis would never have come forth without the guidance of Professor Ryan Barilleaux, the Chair of Political Science at Miami University. Professor Barilleaux’s leadership throughout this process has been immeasurable. For his assistance in obtaining funding for research and travel, I extend my gratitude. In addition, I turned to many for direction, proof reading, support, and ears to listen. Among those, Jennifer Boak, Jerome Conley, my parents Steve and Judy Mascho, my family and my friends. I must thank Professors Richard Forgette and Augustus Jones for participating as members of my thesis committee. Finally, I thank the participants in this work. Without the words and astuteness of the politicians, this project would be merely a thought. Whether offering their time for meetings or their pen for questionnaires, I am indebted for their assistance. For that I thank State Representatives Jeb Bardon, Mark Kruzan, and Derrick Seaver, State Senator Cleo Fields, Governor Jane Swift, Congressmen Sherrod Brown, Joseph Crowley, David Dreier, Virgil Goode, Gene Green, Jesse Jackson, Jr., James Langevin, Adam Putnam, Paul Ryan, Martin Sabo, Bob Schaffer, and Adam Smith. I also thank Senators Tom Daschle, Blanche Lincoln, and John Sununu. Finally, although thorough and tenacious in this research, errors will be found and belong to the author and the author alone. vii Part One Introduction This work is not intended to solve the age-old riddles of political science. It is also not intended to end the debate of young persons in politics. Instead, what is offered is the culmination of two years of research and planning devoted to subject important to us all. Our history is teeming with stories of young citizens rising to great positions of power and prestige in short amounts of time. This phenomenon starts with the earliest points of history and continues to this day. As an attempt to understand one small example of success, I have chosen to examine young elected officials. In doing so, I have met with or received responses to questions from twenty elite politicians. This work incorporates the comments and suggestions of three state Representatives, one Governor, thirteen members of the Unites State House of Representatives, and three U.S. Senators. Much of what is written in the following work comes directly from the dialogue of these notable figures, for whom better to teach of the lessons of practical politics than those who apply them? For many reasons, I rely heavily upon their comments. The nine politicians I personally interviewed were candid and direct. I spent in excess of 3 hours interviewing these members and hold over fifty pages in transcriptions. In addition, I have eleven questionnaires, each four pages in length. The record on young people in politics is incomplete. Strong research does not exist or goes unrecognized. However, one work cannot fill this void. Instead, I hope to spark interest in a subject which remains critically important to 1 the study of politics and society. Regardless of our nation’s voting age or the lack involvement of young people at the polls, the success of youth in America continues. Finally, this thesis is based upon the views and interests of a select group of people. As a young author, I present to you the notion of success regardless of age. The officials chosen for their observations on politics are successful candidates. In most cases, these officials are career politicians. One must consider their comments in the context of their lives and careers. I do not present this group as a representative model of electoral politics. In fact, I am certain that for every young winning candidate offering positive advice to the ambitious youth of society, there are a great many more losing candidates with opposite recommendations. However, my intent is to define, describe, and analyze successful candidacies while introducing concepts which should generate many questions for the reader. 2 Part Two Defining the “young politician” Before any characterization of a young politician can be made based upon life experience, background, or values, the age of the “young politician” must be defined. For this I turn to data collected about the 772 members of the U.S. House and 126 members of the U.S. Senate elected to office between 1980 and 2002. I have gone to great lengths to verify the accuracy of this data however mistakes may occur. In the event that omissions were erroneously made, I am confident that the “sample” of 898 officials will suffice. An attempt was made to collect information regarding the age at election of various state officials. However, the record on these officials is incomplete. Instead, as I examine the officials I have chosen for interviews or to complete questionnaires, I turn to the many citations on each which note their young age in the respective position. For instance, Mark Kruzan was the youngest member of the Indiana General Assembly from 1986 until 1990, Bob Schaffer was the youngest State Senator in Colorado history, and Jane Swift was the youngest woman ever elected to the Massachusetts State Senate, the youngest female Governor of Massachusetts and the youngest Governor in the country at the time of her appointment. Seen as examples of the work to follow, I am confident in the officials I have chosen to represent the voice of the young politician. But the question remains, what is a young politician? To answer, I turn to the election information on the 898 officials elected to the U.S. Congress between 1980 and 2002 contained in Appendixes F and G. In the U.S. House, those whose 3 age on Election Day was 31 or less amount to just 42 of the 772 members, or 5.44% of the population of Representatives. Those age 30 or younger represent 3.63%, those age 29 just 2.46%, the 28 or younger group represents 1.55% and finally those members elected with at an age of twenty-six or twenty-seven represent just 0.91% of the 772 members elected between 1980 and 2002. Newly elected U.S. House members 1980-2002 Age Number of members Percentage of the whole 31 42 5.44% 30 28 3.63% 29 19 2.46% 28 12 1.55% 27 7 0.91% 26 2 0.26% Table 1 For the purpose of this examination, the class of members ages 25 to 31 represents a statistically significant portion of the total membership.