Record Details

Replication Data for: Overcoming the Political Exclusion of Migrants: Theory and Experimental Evidence from India

Harvard Dataverse (Africa Rice Center, Bioversity International, CCAFS, CIAT, IFPRI, IRRI and WorldFish)

View Archive Info
 
 
Field Value
 
Title Replication Data for: Overcoming the Political Exclusion of Migrants: Theory and Experimental Evidence from India
 
Identifier https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/G1JCKK
 
Creator Nellis, Gareth
Gaikwad, Nikhar
 
Publisher Harvard Dataverse
 
Description Migrants are politically marginalized in cities of the developing world, participating in destination-area elections less than local-born residents. We theorize three reasons for this shortfall: migrants’ socio-economic links to origin regions; bureaucratic obstacles to enrollment that disproportionately burden newcomers; and ostracism by anti-migrant politicians. We randomized a door-to-door drive to facilitate voter registration among internal migrants to two Indian cities. Ties to origin regions do not predict willingness to become registered locally. Meanwhile, assistance in navigating the electoral bureaucracy increased migrant registration rates by 24 percentage points and substantially boosted next-election turnout. An additional treatment arm informed politicians about the drive in a subset of localities; rather than ignoring new migrant voters, elites amplified campaign efforts in response. We conclude that onerous registration requirements impede the political incorporation, and thus the wellbeing, of migrant communities in fast-urbanizing settings. The findings also matter for assimilating naturalized yet politically excluded cross-border immigrants.
 
Subject Social Sciences
 
Contributor Nellis, Gareth