Shifting conflict
Schattschneider (1960) stressed the scope of conflict; Riker (1986) described introducing new dimensions to split majorities.
Cross-pressured voters
Hillygus and Shields (2005, 2008) show voters at odds with their party on an issue are persuadable despite party identification; Carmines and Stimson (1989) traced issue evolution.
Legislatures and multiparty systems
Jeong et al. (2011) and van de Wardt et al. (2014) show wedges in Congress and Europe, linked to issue ownership.
FAQ
- What is it in simple terms?
- Raising an issue that divides the other side's supporters.
- Who is most affected?
- Cross-pressured voters who disagree with their party on that issue.
Sources reviewed: 2026-10-26
References
- Schattschneider, E. E. (1960). The semisovereign people: A realist's view of democracy in America. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. The classic on shifting the scope of conflict, a root of wedge strategy.
- Riker, W. H. (1986). The art of political manipulation. Yale University Press. Cases of heresthetics, splitting majorities with new issue dimensions.
- Carmines, E. G., & Stimson, J. A. (1989). Issue evolution: Race and the transformation of American politics. Princeton University Press. Shows how race reshaped party coalitions, a long-run wedge effect.
- Hillygus, D. S., & Shields, T. G. (2005). Moral issues and voter decision making in the 2004 presidential election. PS: Political Science & Politics, 38(2), 201–209. Analyses moral issues in the 2004 US presidential election.
- Hillygus, D. S., & Shields, T. G. (2008). The persuadable voter: Wedge issues in presidential campaigns. Princeton University Press. The key book on targeting cross-pressured voters with wedge issues.
- Jeong, G.-H., Miller, G. J., Schofield, C., & Sened, I. (2011). Cracks in the opposition: Immigration as a wedge issue for the Reagan coalition. American Journal of Political Science, 55(3), 511–525. A legislative case of immigration splitting a coalition.
- van de Wardt, M., De Vries, C. E., & Hobolt, S. B. (2014). Exploiting the cracks: Wedge issues in multiparty competition. Journal of Politics, 76(4), 986–999. How opposition parties use wedge issues in European multiparty systems.