Latino Opinion and Action in the Struggle for America's Political Future

Abstract

Nearly 20 years have passed since this journal's last review of Latino politics. Today, American politics have shifted dramatically, even alarmingly, with Latinos absorbing and contributing to many of these changes. Yet American politics research still overwhelmingly privileges non-Hispanic Whites and their political opinions and behavior. We argue that this marginalization of Latino politics research has even fewer excuses in this era when data, methodologies, and other resources have expanded, making theory-based, empirically grounded research on Latino politics more feasible. We also argue that to better grasp what happens in contemporary politics today and tomorrow, a deeper understanding of Latinos’ political psychology is indispensable because they are a highly diverse, minoritized group whose members are acutely sensitive to structural, temporal, and situational pressures. Finally, in an overwhelmingly quantitative, empirically oriented field, we urge Latino politics scholars to more earnestly consider the normative implications of research on this growing pan-ethnic population.