Periodical Databases:

1) Academic Search Complete - the most comprehensive source of full-text political science articles.  This database and the other article databases can be reached from the main USM library home page at library.usm.maine.edu by clicking DATABASES AND MORE or SEARCH A SPECIFIC DATABASE and  finding the database in alphabetical order.  You may limit your search to articles for which the full text is available electronically by checking FULL TEXT in the LIMIT YOUR RESULTS section of the search.  You may also limit your results to professional journal articles by checking the box for PEER REVIEWED. 

2) Worldwide Political Science Abstracts - the most complete inventory of political science articles.  The database has citations for significant journal articles published since 1975.

3) ProQuest Newstand - a good source for full-text newspaper articles.   Choosing ADVANCED SEARCH from the SEARCH METHODS menu at the top of the page will enable you to limit your search in useful ways.

4) Project MUSE - source of full-text, peer-reviewed articles in political science and other disciplines. 

5) Political Science Subject Guide (USM library) -  Excellent list of print/web resources in political science.  From library page, click START YOUR RESEARCH SUBJECT AND COURSE GUIDES to go to resource compiled by the library. 

6) JSTOR - Excellent archive of scholarly journal articles.  The most recent articles are not available.

Online Catalog:

URSUS catalogs everything owned by USM and other libraries in the University of Maine system.  URSUS includes government documents.  If an item is in the UM system, it can be requested by clicking on the REQUEST icon at the top of the record.  They typically take between 3-5 days to arrive.  You can limit your search to materials held by the Glickman Library in Portland by clicking INDIVIDUAL URSUS COLLECTIONS and selecting USM Portland.  If you want to search books outside of the Maine system, the worldcat database is available by clicking ALL DATABASES on the main library page.  You may submit your inter-library loan requests electronically from the main library page.  Books typically arrive in 5-10 days.

Journals:

Paper copies of select journals are kept in alphabetical order on the 3rd floor of the Glickman Library.  This is where to go when a periodical index does not have the full text online, but indicates that USM subscribes to the journal.  USM has modern microfilm machines that load and advance quickly.  A number of the conference papers given at the American Political Science Association annual meeting will become journal articles.

Reference Books for Political Statistics:

1) Statistical Abstract of the United States (Reference Desk: HA 202 A3) - various social, economic, and political statistics

2) Political Handbook of the World (Ref JF 37 P6) - summary of political landscape for countries throughout the world

3) Vital Statistics on American Politics (Ref JK 274 S74) - American political data

4) America Votes (Ref JK 1967) - election results broken down by state and local area

Major Web Resources:

1) usa.gov - gateway to federal government sites including the Census Bureau

2) United Nations - UN documents and statistics

3) Opensecrets.org - campaign finance data

4) Google is the leading search engine for the World Wide Web.  Be sure to consider the source.

Legal Reference:

1) Legal Information Institute at Cornell - Supreme Court decisions.  Other good sources include Findlaw and the official Supreme Court site.

2) Thomas - comprehensive source for information about Congress and federal statutes

3) Maine - resource for Maine laws

4) USM Law Library - located within law building on Portland campus