ABSTRACT
P olitical, ideological, and religious interest groupsrepresent political interests from across the ide-ological spectrum, from the far right to the left. Some were founded early in the twentieth century and have long records of political activism and influence. Most were founded during the wave of interest group formation that emerged after the 1960s. Some of the groups are nonmembership groups, as in the case of ‘‘think tanks’’ that focus on putting research and policy analyses into the hands of decision makers. Other groups draw their strength from a large and active membership that can be mobilized to bring pressure on elected officials. These membership bases are diverse, representing some of the traditionally active segments of the population with higher incomes and education but including more recently mobilized populations, for example, people who favor prayer in schools and oppose abortion rights. The financial resources of these groups run the gamut as well, from contributor-dependent groups with annual budgets of less than $100,000 to corporate-and foundation-backed groups with annual budgets as high as $50 million.
