Blacks, Whites, and the Voting Rights Act: The Politics of Contextual Change

Authors

  • Donald L. Davison

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2374-7781.1991.12.0.3-20

Abstract

This research argues that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 produced dramatic changes in the racial, political, and legal contexts of the South. By guaranteeing the franchise to 3.5 million eligible black voters the VRA contributed to a change in the racial and political equilibrium of the 505 counties covered by the V R A Within these counties, many Southern white voters responded to the mobilization of black voters by casting votes for Republican candidates in congressional elections. The change in white partisan voting patterns appears to be inversely related to socioeconomic status.

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Published

1991-07-01

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Section

Articles