Host Department:
Political Science
Date: 10/21/2011
Time: 12:00PM - 1:30PM
Location: Eldersveld Room
Description:
Abstract: Why do European center-right parties seek the votes of ethnic minorities at some times and not others? These parties have vowed to protect national identify from enemies within and without, or, in this case, the perceived threat posed by the presence of millions of culturally, religiously, and racially diverse immigrants.
Therefore, most observers would predict that these parties would abstain from pursuing the electoral support of ethnic minorities.
Substantial temporal and spatial variation in center-right party strategy toward ethnic minorities challenges these conventional expectations, as well as dominant theories of the political incorporation of immigrants in Western Europe. An analysis of mainstream party minority strategy toward ethnic minorities demonstrates that center-right parties differentiate between immigrants who are citizens and those who are not, and that they have long time horizons with regards to the future composition of the electorate. We are thus able to predict when center-right parties will use policy and electoral tactics to "redefine the nation."
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