Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy, 19th edition

Published by Pearson (May 18, 2025) © 2026
  • George C. Edwards
  • Martin P. Wattenberg
  • William G. Howell

Title overview

For courses in American Government.

Show how American politics affects public policy

Government in America: People, Politics and Policy shows how politics influences the policies that shape American society. The authors provide a framework for understanding the difficult questions that decision makers of both political parties are facing: how should we govern and what should government do? By examining the scope of government, the authors help students see how politics matters in their own lives.

The 19th Edition offers coverage of the 2024 presidential and congressional elections, recent Supreme Court decisions, and current policies on immigration, budgeting, environmental protection and more.

Hallmark features of this title

  • Chapter-opening vignettes emphasize the significance of government and the importance of participation.
  • You Are the Policymaker features prompt students to read arguments on both sides of a current issue, and then to make a policy decision.
  • Why It Matters Today features encourage students to think critically about an aspect of government, politics or policy and to consider the repercussions if things worked differently.
  • Key terms are defined in the margins to support students’ understanding of important concepts at first encounter. For reference, they’re repeated at the end of each chapter and in the closing glossary.
  • Full text of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Federalist 10 and 51 appears in the Appendix for easy reference.

New and updated features of this title

  • UPDATED: The 19th Edition has been updated to reflect recent changes, some of a historic magnitude, in politics, policy and participation. The authors have updated every figure and table throughout the text to reflect the latest data. In addition, they provide fresh discussions of how to read and analyze historical documents, tables and figures as well as original analysis of leading academic public opinion survey data. The text offers new and updated coverage of the following key topics:
    • The 2024 presidential and congressional elections
    • Recent Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action, free speech, free exercise of religion and defendants’ rights
    • Current policies on health care, budgeting, immigration, environmental protection and the war in Ukraine
    • The increasing role of ideology and policy views in voting behavior, the impact of social media, the problem of misinformation, plus other continuing challenges to US democracy

Key features

Features of Revel for the 19th Edition

  • NEW: American Government simulations immerse students in realistic political scenarios, challenging them to make strategic decisions based on historical contexts. These auto-graded simulations allow readers to see the impact of their decisions on real-world outcomes. Topics include Candidate for Congress, The Electoral College, How to Use Your Vote and more.
  • NEW: Embedded data visualizations featuring Social Explorer technology bring the latest data that underlies policy decisions to life. Once static, the text’s figures are now dynamic presentations that make complex issues interesting and understandable. Formats include side-by-side mapping, custom annotations, clickable layers and storytelling progressions.
  • Current Events Bulletins bring currency into your classroom with author-written articles that connect key concepts with real-life current events. New or revised articles added regularly help students engage with the course.
  • Pearson Originals for Political Science videos illustrate complex concepts like federalism and gerrymandering in a simplified and entertaining way.
  • Politics Hidden in Plain Sight videos show students how politics influences the activities of their daily lives.
  • Chapter-ending So What? videos clarify the focus and distinct ideas of each chapter.

Table of contents

Part 1. Constitutional Foundations

  1. Introducing Government in America
  2. The Constitution
  3. Federalism
  4. Civil Liberties and Public Policy
  5. Civil Rights and Public Policy

Part 2. People and Politics

  1. Public Opinion and Political Action
  2. The Mass Media and the Political Agenda
  3. Political Parties
  4. Campaigns and Voting Behavior
  5. Interest Groups

Part 3. The Policymakers

  1. Congress
  2. The Presidency
  3. The Budget: The Politics of Taxing and Spending
  4. The Federal Bureaucracy
  5. The Federal Courts

Part 4. Policies

  1. Economic and Social Welfare Policymaking
  2. Policymaking for Health Care, the Environment and Energy
  3. Foreign Policymaking

Author bios

About our authors

George C. Edwards III is University Distinguished Professor of Political Science and the Jordan Chair in Presidential Studies Emeritus at Texas A&M University. He is also Distinguished Fellow at the University of Oxford. When he determined that he was unlikely to become shortstop for the New York Yankees, he turned to political science. Today, he is 1 of the country’s leading scholars of the presidency and has written or edited 28 books on American politics and was for 24 years editor of Presidential Studies Quarterly. He has held senior positions at Oxford, the University of London, Sciences Po Paris, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Peking University in Beijing and the US Military Academy at West Point.

Martin P. Wattenberg teaches courses on American politics at the University of California, Irvine. His first regular paying job was with what is now known as the Washington Commanders, from which he moved on to receive a PhD at the University of Michigan. He is the author of numerous books on American elections, including Is Voting for Young People?, recently issued in its sixth edition (2024). His research also encompasses how elections in the United States compare to those in other established democracies.

William G. Howell is the Sydney Stein Professor of American Politics at the University of Chicago, where he serves as the Director of the Center for Effective Government in the Harris School of Public Policy and co-host of Not Another Politics Podcast. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, William has written widely on American politics and political institutions, especially the presidency. He lives in Chicago with his wife, 2 children and dog.

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