A systematic study of the significant influence that domestic political competition can have on the international conflict behavior of states. "Alexis de Tocqueville decried the inability of democracies to conduct efficient foreign policy, while contemporary academics and politicians praise democracies for their pacific behavior. In Elections and War, Gaubatz shows why both are right. This important book confirms that electoral pressures constrain democratic leaders' ability to make war, but they also provide incentives to ignore belligerent publics."