Legislators flip-flop on passing a bill when they think voters want them to, but only when it’s visible

People often perceive politicians as being both inconsistent and uncompromising despite the fact that these perceptions cannot both be true. In reality, legislators have to walk a fine line between responsiveness and consistency to remain in good standing with both their party and their voters. In new research, Adam Cayton studies how and when legislators do change their positions on issues. He finds that members of Congress change positions on very visible final passage votes in response to their districts, but not on poorly understood procedural votes.