Campaigning While Black - by Matthew Tokeshi (Paperback)

About the Book

Why is it so rare for Black candidates to win elections for governor and U.S. senator? Matthew Tokeshi examines the campaigns of every Black challenger for these offices from 2000 through 2020 and points to the significant effects of racial appeals to white voters.

Book Synopsis

Even today, Black politicians rarely hold the most powerful elected offices one step below the presidency: governor and U.S. senator. While about 11 percent of the electorate is Black, only 3 percent of senators and 2 percent of governors are Black. Only ten Black Americans have been elected to these offices since Reconstruction, and forty-two states have never elected a Black governor or U.S. senator. Why is it so rare for Black candidates to win elections for these offices?

Matthew Tokeshi examines the campaigns of every Black challenger for those offices from 2000 through 2020 and points to the significant effects of racial appeals to white voters. He demonstrates that Black candidates consistently face more attacks on stereotypically anti-Black themes such as crime, sexual misbehavior, and economic redistribution than comparable white candidates. Such attacks diminish their support among the large number of white voters with ambivalent or negative attitudes toward Blacks. However, despite this formidable hurdle, Black candidates can in some circumstances mitigate the effects of negative racial messages.

Presenting timely new evidence on the racial dynamics that shape electoral politics in the United States, Campaigning While Black exposes the unique obstacles facing Black candidates and highlights ways that these barriers can be overcome.

Review Quotes

In this ambitious book, Tokeshi masterfully and systematically demonstrates what we intuitively know--Black candidates for statewide office experience a different and more negative campaign environment than their white counterparts. He also offers vital insights on the campaign strategies Black candidates can use to mitigate the effects of negative racial attacks. Campaigning While Black is a must-read for scholars and students of race and ethnic politics.--LaFleur Stephens-Dougan, author of Race to the Bottom: How Racial Appeals Work in American Politics

Tokeshi provides a major contribution to our understanding of when and how racial attacks are effective and what candidates can do about them. The focus on African American women at the state level is new and important to our understanding of the links among race, gender, and state politics.--Christopher Stout, author of Bringing Race Back In: Black Politicians, Deracialization, and Voting Behavior in the Age of Obama

Tokeshi's book is timely as we think about the future of political representation in the United States. Asking if race is still a hurdle today for Black candidates, Tokeshi finds that Black candidates do not need to remain silent when attacked. This book is a must-read for those interested in race and politics, campaigns, and racial attitudes.--Andrea Benjamin, author of Racial Coalition Building in Local Elections: Elite Cues and Cross-Ethnic Voting

About the Author

Matthew Tokeshi is an assistant professor of political science at Williams College.