Ladies’ Choice: Women of Color Linked Fate and Cross-Racial Support for Politicians (w/ Joyce Nguy and Dr. Nathan Chan)

This paper seeks to understand the public opinion formation among women of color (WoC) in America. How do identity-based factors, such as linked fate with other women of color influence their political evaluations? Expanding on social identity theory and intersectionality frameworks, we argue that the group “women of color” has become a distinct, coalescing, and politicized identity that is based on a shared double marginalization along the lines of race and gender, and that this group identity has become politically consequential. We theorize that women of color’s perception of intersectional linked fate explain their strong levels of support for women of color in politics. To test our theory, we utilize the newest, 2020 wave of the Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey, a nationwide public opinion survey which oversampled enough respondents to do across racial and gender group analysis. We find that among African American, Latina, and Asian American women, higher levels of women of color linked fate are associated with stronger favorability of WoC in politics utilizing the case studies of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley, two of the most visible WoC currently in Congress. On the other hand, stronger women of color linked fate is negatively related to support for Donald Trump, who is largely perceived to be against the interests of women of color. This research has important implications for public opinion research and future elections, especially as candidate pools and politicians continue to increasingly diversify in the United States.