1. Unequal Distribution of Campaign Contributions to Minority Candidates.
- Author
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Bejarano, Christina
- Subjects
- *
CAMPAIGN funds , *EQUALITY , *MINORITY politicians , *PRESSURE groups , *UNITED States legislators - Abstract
This paper examines the biased interest group system to determine if it is one of the main reasons minority candidates encounter multiple disadvantages when running for elective office. Bias is demonstrated by inequality of interest groups (which are heavy on the affluent business types) that lead to unequal support through campaign funding and unequal representation in the political system. I argue a candidateÂ’s ethnicity or race, like gender, can affect the likelihood that he or she will have a disadvantage at receiving campaign contributions. I examine the state legislators that were elected to the 2005 session to determine the possible inequities in campaign contributions. I hypothesize minority candidates, men and women, raise less money on average than other candidates. To test this hypothesis, I focus on the states which have a substantial minority population (Texas, California, and Florida). The independent variables include the race or ethnicity and gender of each major party legislative candidate. The dependent variable is the total amount of campaign contributions received by the elected legislator. I find that the data is not consistent with previous literature since there are few significant relationships between ethnicity of the candidate and their total amount of campaign contributions. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2006