SOCIAL-WELFARE AND IDEOLOGICAL ATTITUDES OF UNITED-STATES NONVOTERS -ASSESSING THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF THE NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION ACTOF 1993

This paper examines the potential electoral impact of the addition of United States nonvoters into the electorate, since a large portion of this non-voting population is likely to be mobilized by the liberalize d voter registration procedures mandated by the National Voter Registr ation Act of 1993. Recent and cumulative survey data measuring the soc ial welfare attitudes of United States nonvoters suggest that the addi tion of those voters would have a left effect on the overall attitudes of the electorate. Past nonvoter attitude analysis has interpreted su ch attitudes only in the context of relative electoral advantages nonv oter mobilization would offer to the two major political parties. Howe ver, nonvoters' lack of ideological or attitudinal connection to eithe r of the two major political parties suggests that the true impact of their addition to the electorate is not adequately measured by traditi onal analysis limited to which of these two parties is likely to benef it from their mobilization.