State Politics & Policy Quarterly | Vol. 5 No. 3| The Impact of Multimember State Legislative Districts on Welfare Policy

Abstract

Volume 5• Number 3

Fall 2005

CHRISTOPHER W. LARIMER
University of Nebraska-Lincoln

The Impact of Multimember State Legislative Districts on Welfare Policy

Electing members of legislatures through multimember districts (MMDs) reduces racial and ethnic minorities’ descriptive representation in those bodies, but is their substantive representation also hurt? Do legislative MMDs lead to worse policy outcomes for minorities independent of their effect on legislative demographics? To address these questions, I examine welfare policy in the states from 1997 to 2000. I find evidence that suggests that states whose upper legislative chamber is comprised of MMDs have significantly less generous welfare policy. I conclude that MMDs do indeed damage the substantive representation of racial and ethnic minorities in legislatures, independent of their effect on descriptive representation.

Home | Issue Index

Content in State Politics & Policy Quarterly is intended for personal, noncommercial use only. You may not reproduce, publish, distribute, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, modify, create derivative works from, display, or in any way exploit the SPPQ database in whole or in part without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Terms and Conditions of Use