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This article summarizes research that has been done on state legislative elections since the ICPSR released computer files of these elections for the 1968-1986 period. The major topics include incumbent success, the effect of national trends, electoral causes of divided government, effects of districting systems on outcomes, and campaign finance. Suggestions are made for further research, and some of the methodological problems of such research are discussed. Particular attention is given to the need for merging these data with other electoral and contextual data. This is difficult because these data are seldom broken down by legislative district. There is a need to more clearly distinguish between incumbent advantages and the partisan control of districts in explaining incumbent success—an issue that raises methodological problems.

There are seven states in which preprimary endorsements are provided by law, mostly ones that have used them for twenty years or more. and five other states where the rules of one or both parties provide for endorsements. States with legal endorsements continue to have relatively few contested primaries. But there has been a substantial decline, from over three-fourths to less than half, in the proportion of gubernatorial endorsees who win contested primaries (in states with either legal or informal endorsements). Endorsements are less successful if the convention represents too narrow a political or ideological base and the primary winner can appeal to a broader constituency.

This is a study of the variables affecting turnout of voters in northern state gubernatorial primaries from 1952 to 1980. The dependent variable is turnout in each party's primary as a percentage of turnout for that party in the general election. Two of the most important independent variables are long-term patterns of primary competition and two-party competition, suggesting that voters develop habitual patterns of voting in primaries. Other predictors of turnout are short-term primary competition, the type of primary (open or closed), and (among Republicans) party endorsement of candidates.

THIS IS A STUDY OF THE VARIABLES AFFECTING TURNOUT OF VOTERS IN NORTHERN STATE GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARIES FROM 1952 TO 1980. THE DEPENDENT VARIABLE IS TURNOUT IN EACH PARTY'S PRIMARY AS A PERCENTAGE OF TURNOUT FOR THAT PARTY IN THE GENERAL ELECTION. TWO OF THE MOST IMPORTANT INDEPENDENT VARIABLES ARE LONG-TERM PATTERNS OF PRIMARY COMPETITION AND TWO-PARTY COMPETITION, SUGGESTING THAT VOTERS DEVELOP HABITUAL PATTERNS OF VOTING IN PRIMARIES. OTHER PREDICTORS OF TURNOUT ARE SHORT-TERM PRIMARY COMPETITION, THE TYPE OF PRIMARY (OPEN OR CLOSED), AND (AMONG REPUBLICANS) PARTY ENDORSEMENT OF CANDIDATES.