How Do Electoral Rules Shape Minority Candidate Emergence?

• In Event: Electoral Mistrust, Voter Confidence and Minority Voter Turnout

Abstract

Why do racial minorities remain underrepresented among office-holders, particularly at the local level? Previous research on descriptive representation often focuses on voter choices at the ballot box and attributes the paucity of minority candidates to voter bias. At the same time, given findings that at-large elections can diminish racial minorities’ political power and candidates selectively run in fa- vorable political landscapes, institutional electoral rules might contribute to the persistent disparity in racial representation among candidates. Despite these expectations, the dynamics under which elec- toral institutions shape candidate emergence among racial minorities remains understudied. I utilize the switch from at-large to by-district city council elections under the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 to causally identify how and under what conditions switching to by-district elections encourages racial minorities to run for local office.

Author

• Zachary Lorico Hertz, University of California, Berkeley