Browsing by Author "Rausch, John David, Jr."
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Item Constitutionally Defining Marriage in a Non-Presidential Election Year : A Study of the Vote in Two States(2006-05) Rausch, John David, Jr.In 2004, voters in thirteen states approved amendments to their state constitutions defining marriage as involving one man and one woman. The process of states adding marriage definition amendments to their constitutions continued with voters in two states considering the issue in 2005. This paper examines the political context of the voting outcomes in those two states, Kansas and Texas. It analyzes the influence of religion on the county-level votes for the marriage definition amendments, controlling for various political, demographic, and socioeconomic variables. The analysis reveals that while religious affiliation was an important fact in the political environment, the relationship between support for marriage definition and the 2004 Republican presidential vote was more important. The analysis also exhibits evidence that counties with large African-American populations strongly supported marriage definition amendments.Item Morality and Medical Marijuana: The 2018 Vote on State Question 788 in Oklahoma(2019-01) Rausch, John David Jr.At the June 2018 primary election, Oklahoma voters considered a citizen initiative to allow the licensed cultivation, use and possession of marijuana for medicinal purposes. The initiative was successful receiving over 57 percent of the vote in a state that most observers consider to be reliably conservative. Many of the post-mortem examinations consider the role rurality in the opposition to medical marijuana. The present research analyzes the role of morality in the vote differences seen in different parts of the state. Using OLS regression, this paper examines the vote on the initiative at the county-level and considers the role of religious affiliation, political party identification, and rurality in the success of the initiative. The findings suggest that support and opposition to the state question is the result of many factors.Item Public Opinion and Confederate Memorials in Amarillo(2018-03) Rausch, John David JrA white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, turned violent in August 2017. The rally directed attention to the presence of Confederate monuments in numerous American cities, including Amarillo, Texas. In an effort to understand the Amarillo public’s opinion of the Confederate statue in Elwood Park, a survey was fielded in September 2017. The survey also queried respondents about Robert E. Lee Elementary School in the Amarillo Independent School District. This poster presents the findings uncovered by the survey, including public opinion on the disposition of the Confederate monument, the possible need to change the name of the elementary school, and the public’s view of the Trump presidency. Much of the information presented here appeared in the pages of the Amarillo Globe-News (Treon, 2017). This poster presents some provocative associations between support for Confederate memorials and support of President Donald Trump. This poster presents a work in progress. In fact, one might argue that this is data in search of a theory.Item To Mask or Not to Mask?: Public Opinion Factors in Mask-wearing Behavior in a Pandemic(2022-01) Rausch, John David; Rausch, Mary Scanlon;The present research seeks to understand who wears a mask in a pandemic. Two surveys of students at a regional public university in the American Southwest were administered in October 2020 and October 2021. The online survey, distributed to students in both traditional brick-and-mortar classrooms and online classes, asked about mask-wearing habits. Respondents also were asked about their ideology and political party identification as well as traditional demographic questions. Comparing two years of survey responses adds an element of change, especially since COVID regulations in Texas changed during that time. Party identification clearly is the most important factor in mask-wearing behavior in 2020. By 2021, an examination of mask-wearing behavior becomes more complex and nuanced.