As the country considers electing its first African-American president, many pundits are wondering how race will factor into the November election. Some media stories focusing on the black community have revealed a sense of pride and excitement about Sen. Barack Obama's candidacy, while others have stressed that black voters are not a monolithic bloc.

In the midst of this historic campaign, Ohio University Press recently published "In the Balance of Power: Independent Black Politics and Third-Party Movements," by Omar Ali. A professor of African American and diaspora studies at Vanderbilt University, Ali examines the dynamic nature of black political agency over the past century. Special consideration is given to vital nonpartisan efforts committed to significant social change, such as the abolition of slavery and the foundations of the civil rights era.

This provocative study brings its research to the present day, when 30 percent of African-Americans self-identify as independents and 40 percent of Americans in general are not aligned with either major party, Ali notes. In tracing this long history of independent politics, Ali reveals, among other things, that Obama is the beneficiary of decades of activism among black and white independents. Ali recently has appeared on several radio programs as an expert on independent voting trends.

Other Recent Ohio University Press titles:

• "American Pogrom: The East St. Louis Race Riot and Black Politics" by Charles Lumpkins. This history considers the political motivations behind one of the country's ugliest race riots.
  
  
  
• "The History of Nebraska Law" edited by Alan G. Gless. Fifteen essays cover a range of significant legal issues in Nebraska history. It is published as part of the Series on Law, Society, and Politics in the Midwest.
  
  
  
• "Album Quilts of Ohio's Miami Valley" by Sue C. Cummings. Miami Valley album quilts are community-based Ohio quilts that exhibit a unique regional folk style. Cummings reveals the research involved in properly identifying the origins of these sought-after collector quilts. This is the third title in the Ohio Quilt Series.
  
  
  
• "Heterosexual Africa? The History of an Idea from the Age of Exploration to the Age of AIDS" by Marc Epprecht. Over the course of the last two centuries, African societies south of the Sahara have come to be viewed as singularly heterosexual. Epprecht argues that Africans, just like people all over the world, have always had a range of sexualities and sexual identities.
  

Other Ohio University Press notes:

• In recent weeks, Ohio University Press titles have been reviewed in the following places: Western Historical Quarterly, Pacific Affairs: An International Review of Asia and the Pacific, the Mansfield News Journal, American Periodicals, Journal of Archival Organization, South Central Review, CHOICE and BellaOnline.
  
  
  
• "Searching for Fannie Quigley: A Wilderness Life in the Shadow of Mount McKinley," a biography by Alaska historian Jane Haigh, is a finalist for a Women Writing the West Literary Award. Winners will be announced in late October.