The Latina Advantage by Christina E. Bejarano

Author:Christina E. Bejarano [Bejarano, Christina E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Published: 2013-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 5

Diverse State Legislators in California

Between the 2000 and 2010 Census, the Latino population in California grew from 11.0 million to 14.0 million (an increase of 27.8 percent), and this “accounted for almost all of the state’s population growth” during that decade (NALEO 2010b). California also has the second-highest number of Latino elected officials in the country, such as the total of 1,296 elected Latino officials in 2009 (NALEO 2010d).

This chapter includes an examination of the factors that influence the electoral fortunes of racial/ethnic-minority candidates in California. Minority politics in California, especially in the Assembly, has experienced dynamic changes in the last thirty years. The racial/ethnic-minority population grew dramatically in the state and transitioned, progressing from virtual exclusion from the democratic process to projecting growing voice and leadership roles in the state.

Early California History

The history of the racial/ethnic-minority population in California and in its legislature provides important contextual information on the electoral environment for minorities in the state. While California was under Mexican dominance, from 1821 until 1848 (Field and Sohner 2002:17) Mexicans controlled the political landscape with their own traditions. However, as Anglo-Americans migrated to the region they dramatically changed this racially mixed Hispanic society and soon became the majority population in the state (Hyink and Provost 2001:5). In 1846, the newcomers represented over 80 percent of the state’s population, and much of this increase had come with the rush for gold (Hyink and Provost 2006). The new settlers were “by and large contemptuous of the Mexicans” and did not assimilate to their political traditions (Hyink and Provost 2001:3). The result of these early actions was that the two groups would have a long history of conflict and resentment towards each other (2001:5).

The United States’ defeat of Mexico in 1848 resulted in more conflict and the continued marginalization of California Mexicans, who lost much of the political and economic power they once wielded (Field and Sohner 2002:24). The U.S. military then occupied the territory from 1848 until 1850, and the Compromise of 1850 resulted in the admission of California as the thirty-first state in the union. Many native Californians did not survive this period, and “the first governor after statehood called for the extermination of those who remained” (2002:24).

Latinos held public office early in the state’s history; Romualdo Pacheco was governor in 1875, Pablo de la Guerra was lieutenant governor in 1861, and Andrés Pico was a member of the Assembly in 1851 (Hyink and Provost 2001:230). Latinos came to be dramatically underrepresented soon after the new settlers took control. During this time, the state’s economy weakened and the new foreigners—Chinese returning to the state after completing work on railroads—were blamed for the situation (DeBow and Syer 2000:27). This blame was displayed in the second state constitution, which “was loaded with anti-immigrant provisions (aimed at Asian immigrants). The provisions were later declared invalid as violations of the U.S. constitution” (Field and Sohner 2002:19).

Racial/ethnic minorities were officially allowed to vote after 1870 with the adoption of the Fifteenth Amendment. However,

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.