Black and Latino Political Coalitions: Issues Over Candidates

Abstract

It is often assumed that given their shared status as disadvantaged minorities, relative to Whites, Blacks and Latinos should work together politically. However, as recent elections in Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, and New York show, sometimes Blacks and Latinos work together and sometimes they do not. Recent works have focused on the role of racial attitudes in Black-Latino coalition formation and conclude that Black-Latino coalitions are unlikely. Yet the voting record is not so clear. Using data from an experiment, I show that when race/ethnicity is made salient in elections, Blacks and Latinos will rely on cues from co-ethnic leaders when evaluating candidates on a variety of policy issues. The data suggest that possible Black-Latino coalitions may be form in response to specific policies areas and not around candidates.

Keywords: Blacks, Latinos, Coalitions, Policies, Experiments