Full Citation

Title: Minority Representation and Redistricting

Citation Type: Dissertation/Thesis

Publication Year: 2018

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Abstract: The redrawing of legislative district boundaries is one of most effective ways of elevating the level of minority representation in Congress, but it can similarly be the principal way in which representation and influence are diluted. In this paper, minority representation is evaluated through descriptive representation and substantive representation. Examining the ways in which different bodies redistrict and provide for representation, this study assesses a potential tradeoff that is produced through the creation of districts that provide for descriptive representation. The findings herein suggest that the concentrations of minority populations in districts significantly influence the support of pertinent civil rights legislation. Similarly, the method used to draw the districts produces differing levels of descriptive and substantive representation. This study demonstrates the importance of the close monitoring of redistricting practices, the positive and negative effects of districts with high levels of minority concentration and further provides a framework upon which the decision in Shelby County v. Holder can be understood as potentially threatening to the half century of successes provided for by the Voting Rights Act.

Url: https://cdr.lib.unc.edu/concern/honors_theses/w0892f68n

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Authors: Mengert, Matthew

Institution: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Department: Political Science

Advisor: Clark, Christopher

Degree: Senior Honors Thesis

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Pages: 66

Data Collections: IPUMS NHGIS

Topics: Other, Race and Ethnicity

Countries: United States