Curtis Gans

Curtis Bernard Gans (June 17, 1937 – March 15, 2015) was an American activist, writer, and expert on American voting patterns.[1]

Curtis Gans
Curtis Gans speaking at a 2004 Washington Foreign Press Center Briefing on "The Upsurge in Voter Registration and Expectations for Turnout in the 2004 Elections.
Born
Curtis Bernard Gans

(1937-06-17)June 17, 1937
Brooklyn, New York
DiedMarch 15, 2015(2015-03-15) (aged 77)
Frederick, Maryland
OccupationCo-founder, Director
OrganizationCenter for the Study of the American Electorate
Known forExpertise: voter turnout and participation
WebsiteGans' page at CDEM

With Allard K. Lowenstein, Gans in 1967 started and headed the Dump Johnson movement. Based on opposition to the Vietnam War, the movement, which was considered quixotic at first, grew strong and was instrumental in setting in motion events which eventually persuaded president Lyndon Johnson that continuing his campaign to be re-nominated for the presidency by his party would be difficult and divisive and uncertain of success. Johnson withdrew his candidacy, an unusual event in American politics for a sitting president.

Gans studied turnout and voting patterns for more than three decades.[2] He co-founded and was director of the Center for the Study of the American Electorate, formerly housed at American University in Washington, D. C.[3] Gans was commonly sought out by major American publications as an expert on voting patterns and was sometimes called on by the US State Department's Foreign Press Center to brief foreign reporters during the runup to American elections.[4][5]

Additionally, he served as a consultant to the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, the National Committee for an Effective Congress, and managed a number of political campaigns.[3] In 2015, he died at the age of 77 of lung cancer.[6][7]

Bibliography

Books
  • Gans, Curtis (2010). Voter Turnout in the United States, 1788-2009. CQ Press. ISBN 978-1604265958.

Selected articles

References
  1. Kaiser, Charles (2012). 1968 in America. Grove Press. p. 27. ISBN 9780802193247.
  2. Michael Tackett (October 1, 2013). "U.S. Fiscal Feud Sees No Heroes as Voters Assess Blame". Bloomberg. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  3. "Curtis Gans". American University. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  4. "Curtis Gans, Director, Committee for the Study of the American Electorate". Foreign Press Centers, US State Department. 2004. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  5. Susan Milligan (June 6, 2012). "A Cohort That's Up for Grabs This Year". AARP Blog. AARP. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  6. Nuckols, Ben (March 16, 2015). "Activist, voter turnout expert Curtis Gans dies at 77". KAAL-TV. Associated Press. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
  7. Roberts, Sam (March 16, 2015). "Curtis Gans, 77, Is Dead; Worked to Defeat President Johnson". New York Times. Retrieved March 17, 2015.


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