The comprehensively revised second edition of this successful text provides an up-to-date analysis of the changing world of local politics in Britain. Substantial new sections have been added on local political parties, hung councils, the politics of non-elected local government, recent developments in privatisation, and the politics of the poll tax. The book now provides a systematic treatment of the Thatcher legacy in local politics, the philosophy and strategy which underpinned it and likely futures in the post-Thatcher era. Reviews of the 1st edition: 'Should be read by anyone seeking to understand local government and its possible futures.' - George Jones, Local Government Chronicle. 'An excellent and stimulating introductory text.' - Peter McLaverty, Sociological Review.

Combining scholarly literature with elected experience at the local governmental level, Barry E. Truchil addresses the inner workings and politics of local government in small town and suburban settings in The Politics of Local Government. This book explores issues involving development and implementation of budgets, regulation, and control of development (including conversion of open space to housing and business buildings), as well as the initiation of progressive changes such as the use of green energy and control of corruption. Given the limited available research in this area, this book fills a void for scholars in the field, undergraduate and graduate students as well as those interested in the politics of local government.

This book is an explanation of the long-standing interrelationship between local government and political parties. It examines and outlines the differences between the political party outside the council and the political party group of councillors within the council. It explores the impact that the party groups have on the conduct of council business, decision-making and policy development and the impact they have on local representation. It addresses two questions that are fundamental to local representative democracy--who or what is it that the councillor represents, and are councillors elected to govern or to serve.

This book offers an overview of the legal, political, and broad intergovernmental environment in which relations between local and state units of government take place, the historical roots of the conflict among them, and an analysis of contemporary problems concerning local authority, local revenues, state interventions and takeovers, and the restructuring of local governments. The author pays special attention to local governmental autonomy and the goals and activities of local officials as they seek to secure resources, fend off regulations and interventions, and fight for survival as independent units. He looks at the intergovernmental struggle from the bottom up, but in the process examines a variety of political activities at the state level and the development and effects of several state policies. Berman finds considerable reason to be concerned about the viability and future of meaningful local government.

Democrats have largely ceded control of state governments to the GOP, allowing them to rig our political system and undermine democracy itself. After the 2016 election, Republicans had their largest majority in the states since 1928, controlling legislative chambers in thirty-two states and governor offices in thirty-three. They also held both chambers of Congress and the presidency despite losing the popular vote. What happened? Meaghan Winter shows how the Democratic Party and left-leaning political establishment have spent the past several decades betting it all on the very risky and increasingly foolhardy strategy of abandoning the states to focus on federal races. For the American public, the fallout has been catastrophic. At the behest of their corporate patrons, Republican lawmakers have diminished employee protections and healthcare access and thwarted action on climate change. Voting rights are being dismantled, and even the mildest gun safety measures are being blocked. Taking us to three key battlegrounds--in Missouri, Florida, and Colorado--Winter reveals that robust state and local politics are the lifeblood of democracy and the only lasting building block of political power.

Focusing on five Los Angeles environmental policy debates between 1920 and 1950, Sarah Elkind investigates how practices in American municipal government gave business groups political legitimacy at the local level as well as unanticipated influence over