Document Type

Dissertation

Date of Award

2021

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Political Science

First Advisor

Richard Braunstein

Abstract

During most of the 20th century, immigration to the United States had slowed considerably. When the United States changed to the immigration policy of family reunification in 1965, the source of immigrants shifted from Europe to South America, Central America, and Asia. With this change, the nation became increasingly racially and ethnically diverse. With increased pluralism, the number of intergroup contacts increased. In a society whose history of race relations has been complicated and often unpleasant, this paper begins an on-going examination as to how the majority group, Whites, responded politically to increased pluralism. Racial threat theory explains how Whites have used party shifting and voter turnout to respond politically towards ethnic changes in traditionally White neighborhoods.

Keywords

Intergroup Contact Theory, Racial Threat Theory, social network, voting

Number of Pages

113

Publisher

University of South Dakota

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