The Right to Vote

The Contested History of Democracy in the United States

By: Alexander Keyssar

Narrated by: Brian Troxell

Originally published in 2000, The Right to Vote was widely hailed as a magisterial account of the evolution of suffrage from the American Revolution to the end of the 20th century. In this revised and updated edition, Keyssar carries the story forward, from the disputed presidential contest of 2000 through the 2008 campaign and the election of Barack Obama. The Right to Vote is a sweeping reinterpretation of American political history as well as a meditation on the meaning of democracy in contemporary American life.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©2000 Alexander Keyssar (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

The definitive work on voting rights in the US

Given the importance of current developments -- most of them regrettable -- in voting rights, the dearth of comprehensive works on the subject is surprising. It was surprising as well to Professor Keyssar, and this book is the result. His research was exhaustive, and the story is revealing. The many ways that voting rights have been defined, and often restricted, over our history is fully laid out. Restrictions on minorities (African-Americans and Native Americans, primarily), immigrants and the poor are thoroughly explained here: poll taxes, grandfather clauses, white primaries, felony disqualification and many other devices are methodically examined as they rose and fell over time in response to political demands. This is a scholarly work, not a partisan political one. The only disappointment is that the book was published in 2004, with a revision in 2008, and thus does not examine the Supreme Court's gutting of the Voting Rights Act in 2013. The final chapters are therefore more optimistic than events have supported. But it is the single most important, thorough and authoritative treatment of this important subject. Essential reading if one is to understand voting rights in the US.

A “Must Read” for Serious Readers of Politics

The author is successful in offering a wide view of historical political strategies surrounding the Vote, as political parties have sought to influence the outcomes of American elections. In the last chapter, the book presents the reader with a glimmer of hope for the future of democracy that we don’t often see in the news.