Changing City Limits: How Annexation Shapes Social and Political Outcomes

• In Event: Civic Learning on Campus: Bringing Political Science In Mini-Conference III: Local Political Institutions and Citizen Engagement across Cases

Abstract

City limits shape daily life: local political boundaries in the US affect taxes, zoning, service provision, emergency management, and more. Cities often have more taxes and restrictions but offer their residents more services than unincorporated (county) areas, but these boundaries are not fixed. The annexation of neighborhoods into cities has created a patchworked geography and complex governance system that includes “donut holes” – unincorporated areas surrounded by incorporated areas and managed by a mix of municipal, county, and special district actors. We begin with a descriptive analysis of incorporated and unincorporated areas, including demographics (race, income) and environmental conditions (flood risk). With longitudinal data on changes in annexation from 2010-20 in Texas merged with Census block and precinct turnout data, we ask how annexation is associated with changes in local demographics and political participation. We expect that residing in an area that is annexed into city limits increases the salience of political issues and thus increases voter turnout, especially in elections for local and state offices. We incorporate qualitative data from case studies of counties on the Gulf Coast with different social and political demographics: Galveston County outside of Houston and Cameron County on the Mexican border. This mixed-methods study provides insight into the interaction of political institutions and political behavior and explores the impact of city limits on accountability, representation, and gentrification.

Authors

• Kyle Anthony Trojahn, University of Texas, Austin

• Sara Constantino, Northeastern University

• Alicia Dailey Cooperman, George Washington University

• Manuela Muñoz Fuerte, Texas A&M University