Cramer is the author of
The Politics of Resentment, a book based on almost a decade of studying political attitudes in rural
Wisconsin through
ethnography. She argues that "rural consciousness" acts as a basis for rural residents to form a social identity and as a lens through which they "think about themselves, other people, and public affairs." According to Cramer, a driver of political sentiment in rural Wisconsin is the beliefs among voters that "I’m not getting my fair share of power, stuff or respect" and "All the decisions are made in
Madison and
Milwaukee and nobody’s listening to us". Cramer has found this "rural resentment" comes partly from changes to rural life and partly from massive changes in the economy. Rural people, she asserts, feel overlooked and disrespected by elites; they work hard,
yet they see the "good life" is passing them by, which is one reason why they voted for
Donald Trump in the
2016 election. ==Publications==