The Politics of Early Years and Family Policy Investments in North America

The chapter examines the North American variant of social investment, focusing on early years and family policy investments in the United States and Canada. Political, economic, and institutional factors differentiate both countries from European and even other liberal welfare states. These include a policy paradigm rooted in a liberal welfare state tradition, an electoral system governed by single-member plurality voting that has historically permitted largely centrist-conservative governments to win elected office, a largely two-party and increasingly ideologically polarized party system in the United States (and a more moderate two-party-plus system in Canada), and decentralized decision-making under federalism. The chapter also examines the key factors that contribute to variation between and within Canada and the United States including Québec exceptionalism, stronger social democratic party influence in Canada, along with more influential civil society actors including organized labor unions, women’s groups, and childcare advocacy organizations. In the United States, in contrast, the relatively weaker trade unions and the stronger conservative social movements and organized interests, including conservative family organizations, claim a large part of the policy space.