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Publius: The Journal of Federalism 1985 15(4):51-60;
© 1985 by CSF Associates Inc.
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As Time Goes By: The Arrested Diffusion of the Equal Rights Amendment

Mark R. Daniels and Robert E. Darcy
Kansas State University
Oklahoma State University

Despite its initial momentum, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) failed to be approved by the margin of states required for ratification. Although many explanations have been advanced for the defeat of the ERA, one possible explanation that has been overlooked is the notion that the timing of a policy can largely determine its success or failure. The article examines the timing or "innovativeness," with which the American states considered the ratification of the ERA. The analysis suggests that the relative innovativeness of states, as exhibited on a wide range of other policies and amendments, accounts for the relative order in which states ratified the ERA. The article concludes that the defeat of the ERA was a matter of timing: states that are slow in adopting other innovations were most vulnerable to the opposition efforts of ad hoc action groups.


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