Democracy in Immigrant America
Changing Demographics and Political Participation
S. Karthick Ramakrishnan
January 2005
240 Pages
Hardcover ISBN: 9780804750448
Paperback ISBN: 9780804755924
Ebook ISBN: 9780804767491
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Democracy in Immigrant America provides a comprehensive analysis of democratic participation among first- and second-generation immigrants in the United States, addressing the questions that are integral to understanding the present-day realities of immigrant politics: How are immigrants changing the racial and ethnic makeup of the American electorate? How do their numbers compare to those in the early 20th century? Do traditional models of political behavior explain the voting participation of immigrants, and should new factors related to immigrant adaptation be considered? By addressing these questions, Democracy in Immigrant America points the way forward for a new research agenda in immigrant politics.
"No question is more challenging to the understanding of the future of American democracy than the impact of immigration on our political and social life. Karthick Ramakrishnan's book is an important and sophisticated analysis of the subject. He brings new data and new understanding. It will be of value to all who want to know what the future of American civic life will be."—Professor Sidney Verba, Harvard University
"Democracy in Immigrant America presents a wealth of new insights into immigrant political incorporation, while persistently and profitably challenging existing models of political participation. Ramakrishnan's book should make an immediate impact in several disciplines and be of considerable interest to policy analysts, political consultants, interest group advocates, and party activists."
—Taeku Lee, Department of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley
"Karthick Ramakrishnan unifies the scholarship on Latino and Asian American voting behavior with the scholarship on immigrant voting behavior to present a theoretically and empirically rich analysis of ethnic voting in the United States. All scholars of American voting behavior who seek to understand the nation's future electorates should have this volume on their shelves."—Louis DeSipio, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine
"Ramakrishnan has written a thorough and well-researched book that provides important tests of the factors that influence immigrant political behavior. This is a timely and fascinating topic whose complexity is managed quite effectively by the author....This book is an interesting read that addresses the issue of immigrant participation from a comprehensive standpoint."—Democracy & Society
"Democracy in Immigrant America presents a wealth of new insights into immigrant political incorporation, while persistently and profitably challenging existing models of political participation. Ramakrishnan's book should make an immediate impact in several disciplines and be of considerable interest to policy analysts, political consultants, interest group advocates, and party activists."
—Taeku Lee, Department of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley
"Karthick Ramakrishnan unifies the scholarship on Latino and Asian American voting behavior with the scholarship on immigrant voting behavior to present a theoretically and empirically rich analysis of ethnic voting in the United States. All scholars of American voting behavior who seek to understand the nation's future electorates should have this volume on their shelves."—Louis DeSipio, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine
"Ramakrishnan has written a thorough and well-researched book that provides important tests of the factors that influence immigrant political behavior. This is a timely and fascinating topic whose complexity is managed quite effectively by the author....This book is an interesting read that addresses the issue of immigrant participation from a comprehensive standpoint."—Democracy & Society
S. Karthick Ramakrishnan is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Riverside.
