I Get by with a Little Help from My Friends: Race and Effective Substantive Representation in Urban Education

Abstract

Substantial evidence in both comparative and U.S. politics indicates that electoral structures can have a significant impact on descriptive representation. Descriptive representation is symbolic, however, unless representatives actively pursue the interests of their constituents. The impact of electoral structures and partisan politics on substantive representation is largely understudied. The study addresses how electoral structures and partisanship affect the ability of descriptive representatives to gain substantive benefits for their constituents. The paper provides a brief argument that links electoral structures and the presence of partisan allies to substantive representation. It then moves to an empirical study of African-American representation in the 1800 largest school districts in the United States through the use of an original survey conducted in 2001, 2004, and 2008. We find that electoral structures can influence the effectiveness of African-American representatives but that this effectiveness is mediated by partisanship which generates potential allies for African-American representatives.