Funded Research

This dissertation project examines rural public opinion and perception of government programs that economically benefit rural areas. Scholars have examined if rural Americans vote against their own interests (Frank, 2004; Bartels, 2006; Cramer, 2016). However, how much do rural Americans know about government programs targeted at rural interests? This work builds upon the theories of the “submerged state” (Mettler, 2011) and policy feedback (Soss & Schram, 2007) and investigates the extent to which rural Americans are both aware of and supportive of government programs that benefit rural areas, such as those run through the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). This project investigates the questions: What effect do rural government programs and public policies have on rural public opinions toward the government? Given demographic changes, particularly the increase in Latinos living in rural America (Frey, 2018), do these opinions vary by race, age, and gender? The mixed-methods dissertation includes a qualitative case study of three counties in rural Vermont (Caledonia, Essex, and Orleans) known as the Northeast Kingdom (NEK). The NEK’s rurality attracts skiers and leaf-peepers, but also comes with the highest child poverty rates and conservative vote share in the largely Democratic state. Political ideology and demographic factors like income and education level also vary across the NEK. With the financial assistance of the CAPE research grant, the qualitative work will be conducted in summer 2025 and includes attending community meetings, conducting focus groups, and interviewing locals about their perception of government, what role they would like the federal, state, and local government to play in their lives, the extent to which they feel provided for by the government, and how demographic change has affected these beliefs.