ABSTRACT
We know less about the acquisition of partisan political identification by immigrant groups than the sources of ‘party id’ generally, however. It does not appear to be based on language dominance or economic status. Length of residence matters, but that may simply be a proxy for naturalization and political exposure. The key is active recruitment, which is most effective when new immigrants are mobilized by ethnically similar partisans and officials through the usual door-to-door canvassing and recruitment (J.S. Wong 2006, 355); the ‘migration of partisanship’ – partisan experience in the country of origin – may be a positive factor as well (McCann and Leal 2010). Once voters turn out, they enter the ranks of ‘likely voters’ (Michelson 2005, 91), more so if they identify as partisans. Again, the responsibility of political parties is to do more than mobilize voters for this or that election, though that is vital; it is to create partisans.
