Sociology

A Phoenix in the Ashes: The Rise and Fall of the Koch Coalition in New York City Politics

Paperback

Price:
$71.00/£58.00
ISBN:
Published:
Sep 12, 1994
1992
Pages:
320
Size:
6 x 9.25 in.
Illus:
26 tables 7 maps
Main_subject:
Sociology
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In the years following its near-bankruptcy in 1976 until the end of the 1980s, New York City came to epitomize the debt-driven, deal-oriented, economic boom of the Reagan era. Exploring the interplay between social structural change and political power during this period, John Mollenkopf asks why a city with a large minority population and a long tradition of liberalism elected a conservative mayor who promoted real-estate development and belittled minority activists. Through a careful analysis of voting patterns, political strategies of various interest groups, and policy trends, he explains how Mayor Edward Koch created a powerful political coalition and why it ultimately failed.