Dr. Jane Gilroy documents a significant episode in American political history: the rise of Ellen McCormack, the pro-life feminist candidate for president in 1976. McCormack received 22 delegate votes in the 1976 Democratic presidential campaign and over 200,000 votes in Democratic primaries across the nation. The campaign reached nearly 200,000,000 persons through paid television commercials.
Dr. Gilroy’s presentation of the McCormack candidacy is factual and never opinionated, as many historical accounts of controversial candidates can be. She traces the developments of the McCormack campaign and reaction to it from the national Democratic Party in extensive detail.
Students writing research papers on the aspects of feminist involvement in presidential politics or third-party candidates will find this work eminently quotable. Sources are provided in footnotes, and there are appendices to support claims made throughout the book. Moreover, scholars of American political history will find that this work fills a serious gap in the study of American politics. Both students and scholars will find parallels with contemporary political movements in American society, such as the Tea Party movement.
Dr. Gilroy must be congratulated on a fine work of scholarship which has the added quality of being written in language that ordinary persons can not only understand, but enjoy reading.
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