occasional mention and emphasis to a degree that makes the president a theme of paid political
advertising or that warrants comment by national media. This coding scheme does not provide a
scale of campaign intensity but nevertheless distinguishes between states and districts where the
campaign focused extensively on the president and where it did not.
Figure 1
Presidential Campaign Focus by Year
(either supporting or attacking the president)
7%
2%
22%
8%
6%
24%
38%
46%
79%
56%
12%
61%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
1977
1978
1982
1986
1990
1994
House
Senate
Figure 1 shows the percentage of contested congressional races—defined as those where
both major parties fielded candidates—included in the ANES featuring a constituency-level
campaign with a presidential focus for the six elections under investigation. Two facets of
presidential focus to midterm congressional elections are apparent. First, the president becomes
part of the campaign rhetoric more frequently in Senate races than House races. This might be a
function of the measurement technique, as Senate campaigns receive more thorough coverage in
11
Convention