With their engaging journalistic writing and crisp storytelling, authors Kevin B. Smith and Alan Greenblatt employ a comparative approach to explain how and why states and localities are both similar and different in institutional structure, culture, history, economy, geography, and demographics. A great blend of high-quality academic analysis and the latest scholarship, this Sixth Edition is thoroughly updated to account for major developments such as state vs. federal conflicts over immigration reform, gun control, and voter rights; health and education reforms aimed at improving the effectiveness of state and local government service delivery; and the lingering effects of the Great Recession.