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Polls and Elections Reversal of Fortune: The Political Behavior of White Migrants to the South
Author(s) -
Hillygus D. Sunshine,
McKee Seth C.,
Young McKenzie
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
presidential studies quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.337
H-Index - 5
eISSN - 1741-5705
pISSN - 0360-4918
DOI - 10.1111/psq.12372
Subject(s) - white (mutation) , democracy , presidential system , political science , politics , voting , political economy , population , voting behavior , development economics , law , sociology , demography , economics , biochemistry , chemistry , gene
What are the political implications of domestic migration to the American South? Using the American National Election Studies, we track the changing dynamic of party identification and presidential voting among white southern in‐migrants and natives. Although it was once thought southern in‐migration from the rest of the country contributed to Republican ascendancy in the region, we find that is no longer true. In the 1970s and 1980s, white migrants to the South were more Republican than natives. Today, white southern in‐migrants are more likely to affiliate with the Democratic Party and vote Democratic, suggesting population change could ultimately shift the partisan balance in the region.