Abstract
New economic historians' explanations of market activity slight the timing of change, as well as the importance of institutions and attitudes. These deficiencies, unimportant in analyses of goods market activity, are unacceptable in analyses of political activity. To extend the domain of economic history to political activity, therefore, I summarize the political market in sentiment (what voters want ex ante), loyalty (what voters want ex post), and acquiescence (what voters accept). To show how these measures facilitate analysis of political activity, I discuss the origins of the American Civil War.

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