TRENDS IN THE PARTISAN COMPOSITION OF STATE LEGISLATURES - A RESPONSETO FIORINA

The percentage of state legislative seats won by Democrats in nonsouth ern states has increased steadily since World War II. Fiorina (1994) a rgues that this is because of the professionalization of state legisla ture: Legislatures now meet longer and pay higher salaries; legislativ e positions which require more time are less attractive to Republicans , who can make more money elsewhere; higher salaries attract Democrats , who make less in the private sector. That analysis has several serio us flaws. First, nonsouthern states have gradually become more Democra tic at all levels as part of a long-term regional political realignmen t. The rise in Democrats in legislatures outside the South is due more to this realignment than to legislative professionalization. Second, trends in southern states contradict his hypothesis. Professionalizati on has increased, but state legislatures are becoming more Republican. Finally, Fiorina's analysis is worth careful reconsideration because it suggests that there is little connection between constituencies and partisan outcomes.