Dangerously Divided As the United States has become more racially diverse and economic inequality has increased, American politics has also become more clearly divided by race and less clearly divided by class. In this landmark book, Zoltan L. Hajnal draws on sweeping data to assess the political impact of the two most significant demographic trends of the last fifty years. Examining federal and local elections over many decades, as well as policy, Hajnal shows that race – more than class or any other demographic factor – shapes not only how Americans vote but also who wins and who loses when the votes are counted and policies are enacted. America has become a racial democracy, with non-Whites and especially African Americans regularly on the losing side. A close look at trends over time shows that these divisions are worsening, yet also reveals that electing Democrats to office can make democracy more even and ultimately reduce inequality in well-being. Zoltan L. Hajnal is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is the author of the award-winning books White Backlash (with Marisa Abrajano), Why Americans Don’t Join the Party (with Taeku Lee), and America’s Uneven Democracy and has pub- lished op-eds in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. He is actively involved in voting rights litigation and local election law reform. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:28:59, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 Dangerously Divided How Race and Class Shape Winning and Losing in American Politics Zoltan L. Hajnal University of California, San Diego Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:28:59, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 University Printing House, Cambridge CB28BS, United Kingdom One Liberty Plaza, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10006, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia 314–321, 3rd Floor, Plot 3, Splendor Forum, Jasola District Centre, New Delhi – 110025, India 79 Anson Road, #06–04/06, Singapore 079906 Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781108487009 DOI: 10.1017/9781108765039 © Cambridge University Press 2020 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2020 Printed in the United Kingdom by TJ International Ltd. Padstow Cornwall A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library. ISBN 978-1-108-48700-9 Hardback ISBN 978-1-108-71972-8 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:28:59, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 Dangerously Divided As the United States has become more racially diverse and economic inequality has increased, American politics has also become more clearly divided by race and less clearly divided by class. In this landmark book, Zoltan L. Hajnal draws on sweeping data to assess the political impact of the two most significant demographic trends of the last fifty years. Examining federal and local elections over many decades, as well as policy, Hajnal shows that race – more than class or any other demographic factor – shapes not only how Americans vote but also who wins and who loses when the votes are counted and policies are enacted. America has become a racial democracy, with non-Whites and especially African Americans regularly on the losing side. A close look at trends over time shows that these divisions are worsening, yet also reveals that electing Democrats to office can make democracy more even and ultimately reduce inequality in well-being. Zoltan L. Hajnal is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is the author of the award-winning books White Backlash (with Marisa Abrajano), Why Americans Don’t Join the Party (with Taeku Lee), and America’s Uneven Democracy and has pub- lished op-eds in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. He is actively involved in voting rights litigation and local election law reform. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:29:00, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 Dangerously Divided How Race and Class Shape Winning and Losing in American Politics Zoltan L. Hajnal University of California, San Diego Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:29:00, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 University Printing House, Cambridge CB28BS, United Kingdom One Liberty Plaza, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10006, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia 314–321, 3rd Floor, Plot 3, Splendor Forum, Jasola District Centre, New Delhi – 110025, India 79 Anson Road, #06–04/06, Singapore 079906 Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781108487009 DOI: 10.1017/9781108765039 © Cambridge University Press 2020 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2020 Printed in the United Kingdom by TJ International Ltd. Padstow Cornwall A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library. ISBN 978-1-108-48700-9 Hardback ISBN 978-1-108-71972-8 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:29:00, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 Dangerously Divided As the United States has become more racially diverse and economic inequality has increased, American politics has also become more clearly divided by race and less clearly divided by class. In this landmark book, Zoltan L. Hajnal draws on sweeping data to assess the political impact of the two most significant demographic trends of the last fifty years. Examining federal and local elections over many decades, as well as policy, Hajnal shows that race – more than class or any other demographic factor – shapes not only how Americans vote but also who wins and who loses when the votes are counted and policies are enacted. America has become a racial democracy, with non-Whites and especially African Americans regularly on the losing side. A close look at trends over time shows that these divisions are worsening, yet also reveals that electing Democrats to office can make democracy more even and ultimately reduce inequality in well-being. Zoltan L. Hajnal is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is the author of the award-winning books White Backlash (with Marisa Abrajano), Why Americans Don’t Join the Party (with Taeku Lee), and America’s Uneven Democracy and has pub- lished op-eds in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. He is actively involved in voting rights litigation and local election law reform. Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:29:01, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 Dangerously Divided How Race and Class Shape Winning and Losing in American Politics Zoltan L. Hajnal University of California, San Diego Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 8.9.95.224, on 07 Jul 2020 at 14:29:01, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765039 University Printing House, Cambridge CB28BS, United Kingdom One Liberty Plaza, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10006, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia 314–321, 3rd Floor, Plot 3, Splendor Forum, Jasola District Centre, New Delhi – 110025, India 79 Anson Road, #06–04/06, Singapore 079906 Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence.