Ruth Caridad Silva (1920 or 1921—April 1, 1995[1]) was an American political scientist. She was a scholar of presidential succession and apportionment in the United States. She spent much of her career at Pennsylvania State University.
Ruth Caridad Silva | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1920 or 1921[1] |
| Died | April 1, 1995[1] State College, Pennsylvania |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Political science |
| Institutions | |
Life and career
editSilva attended the University of Michigan, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Arts degree in 1943, and completed her PhD in 1948.[2] After her PhD, she became an instructor at Wheaton College.[2] In 1948, she became a professor at Pennsylvania State University,[2] where she worked for the remainder of her career.[1] In 1952–1953 she worked as Fulbright Professor at Cairo University (then King Fuad I University).[2]
In 1951, Silva published Presidential Succession. The book devoted five chapters to the intricacies of presidential succession laws in the United States, and ended with a study of presidential succession-related policies.[3] She conducted research for many years on the procedures for replacing presidents who were no longer able to perform their responsibilities.[4][5]
In 1962, Silva published the book Rum, Religion, and Votes: 1928 Re-examined. The book studied the 1928 United States presidential election, focusing in particular on the question of why Al Smith suffered such a lopsided defeat, and examining the extent to which it was due to prejudice against his Catholicism.[6] The book was particularly noted for its use of multivariable regressions to analyze elections, which was then a new application of a methodology that had been made possible by recent advancements in computing.[6]
Other work by Silva concerned political systems in the United States, including voting procedures and institutions like presidential primaries.[7][8] In 1960, Silva prepared the report Legislative Apportionment for the New York State Temporary Commission on Revision and Simplification of the Constitution.[8]
Selected works
edit- Presidential Succession (1951)
- Rum, Religion, and Votes: 1928 Re-examined (1962)
- American Government Democracy and Liberty in Balance, with Edward Keynes, Hugh A. Bone, and David W. Adamany (1976)[9]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Saxon, Wolfgang (6 April 1995). "Ruth Silva, 74, Political Scientist Who Advised on the Presidency". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
- ^ a b c d Silva, Ruth C. (1956). "Presidential Succession and Disability". Law and Contemporary Problems. 21: 646–662. doi:10.2307/1190188. JSTOR 1190188.
- ^ Berdahl, Clarence A. (September 1952). "Review of Presidential Succession". American Political Science Review. 46 (3): 895. doi:10.2307/1952302. JSTOR 1952302.
- ^ Brown, Everrett S. (1956). "Report on Presidential Inability". Staff of House Committee on the Judiciary, 84th Congress: 5.
- ^ Silva, Ruth C. (February 1949). "History of presidential succession". Michigan Law Review. 47 (4): 451–476. doi:10.2307/1284810. JSTOR 1284810.
- ^ a b Bernd, Joseph L. (November 1963). "Review Rum, Religion, and Votes: 1928 Re-examined". Journal of Church and State. 5 (2): 256–258. doi:10.1093/jcs/5.2.256.
- ^ "History of the PPSA". Pennsylvania Political Science Association. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
- ^ a b Silva, Ruth C. (October 1963). "Making Votes Count". National Civic Review. 52 (9): 489–492. doi:10.1002/ncr.4100520906.
- ^ Richard N. Engstrom; Christopher Kenny (December 1, 2002). "The Effects of Independent Expenditures in Senate Elections". Political Research Quarterly. 55 (4): 885–905. doi:10.1177/106591290205500408. S2CID 153617908.