Doctoral Dissertation Research: Candidate Race and Vote Choice

在一些政治制度中，非洲裔公民占选民的大多数，但在政府中的代表性仍然严重不足。这表明，候选人种族可能在这些国家的选举成功中发挥重要作用。然而，之前的研究发现，结果喜忧参半。在这项研究中，PI利用实验设计来重新评估这些不同的发现.PI使用投票实验来评估候选人种族对投票选择的影响。这项研究的发现有可能对种族政治和比较政治中的投票的学术做出贡献，以及解决在一个大民主国家中代表性不足的问题。种族社区代表性不足可能会对民主的质量和稳定产生负面影响。该项目探讨了这些种族差距的原因，并由此找到了解决这些差距的途径。技术摘要在一些国家，非洲裔公民未能获得与其选举实力成比例的代表权，这是有据可查的。然而，候选人种族对选举成功的影响仍不清楚。在这项研究中，PI使用联合投票实验来评估候选人种族对其中一个国家的投票选择的因果影响。这将使独立选举委员会能够确定投票中的种族偏见是基于偏好的歧视还是统计歧视的结果。前者似乎表明种族偏见，而后者与基于种族陈规定型观念的战略决策是一致的。统计偏见和基于偏好的偏见之间的区别对于所讨论的代表不足的群体来说并不重要，但对于一个正常运作的民主政治制度来说，这是一个重要的关切。了解中种族偏见的性质提供了一个起点，从那里可以开始积极的变化。改革选举机构有可能减少每一种种族歧视的影响，赋予重要的政治上代表不足的多数以权力，从而提高民主的质量。

General Abstract Citizens of African descent comprise a majority of the electorate in some political systems, yet are still significantly under-represented in government. This suggests that candidate race may play an important role in electoral success in such countries. Previous research, however, finds mixed results. In this research, the PI utilizes and experimental design to reassess these disparate findings. The PI uses a voting experiment to assess the impact of candidate race on vote-choice. The findings of this study have the potential to contribution to the scholarship on race politics and voting in comparative politics, as well as to address issues of under-representation in a large democracy. Underrepresentation of racial communities may have negative consequences for the quality and stability of democracy. The project explores the cause of these racial disparities and therein a pathway towards addressing them. Technical Abstract The failure of citizens of African descent to attain representation in proportion to their electoral strength in a number of countries is well-documented. The effect of candidate race on electoral success, however, remains unclear. In this research, the PI employs a conjoint voting experiment to assess the causal effect of candidate race on vote-choice in one such country. This will allow the PI to determine whether racial bias in voting is a result of preference-based or statistical discrimination. The former would seem to indicate racial prejudice, while the latter is consistent with strategic decision-making based on racial stereotypes. The distinction between statistical and preference-based bias is unimportant to the underrepresented group in question, but it is an important concern for a functioning democratic political system. Understanding the nature of racial bias in provides a starting point from which positive change can begin. Reforming electoral institutions have the potential to reduce the effects of each type of racial discrimination, empower an important politically underrepresented majority, and thus improve the quality of democracy