True Blues

True Blues: The Contentious Transformation of the Democratic Party is a study by Adam Hilton exploring how the Democratic Party evolved from the late 1960s onward to address who governs political parties.

The volume questions theories of elite control and interest group dominance, contending that they fail to account for insurgencies such as Donald Trump's victory and Bernie Sanders's campaign. Hilton instead frames parties as contentious institutions altered by ongoing struggles between outside groups and officeholders over party identity, programs, and policies.

Published in the American Governance series, the book traces the emergence of an advocacy party characterized by organizational ties to external constituencies and dependence on the presidency.