Sara Sadhwani

Assistant Professor of Political Science, Pomona College

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About Sara

Sadhwani's research focuses on voting behavior, elections, public opinion, public policy, and interest groups, with an emphasis on the representation of racial, ethnic and immigrant communities. Sadhwani's writings include Asian and Latino voting behavior and electoral institutions. Sadhwani serves on the 2020 Citizens Redistricting Commission for the State of California.

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | In the News | Publications

Contributions

Kamala Harris Is Likely to Bring In Indian American Voters, This Research Finds

Commentary, October 2020

In the News

Quoted by Marina Fang in "Indian Americans Take Pride In Kamala, But Democrats Must Not Take Them For Granted," Huffpost, December 22, 2020.

Research discussed by Will Shuck, in "Women Shatter Glass Ceiling on Redistricting Commission ," Capitol Weekly, December 16, 2020.

Quoted by in "Kamala Harris Could Boost Asian American Voter Turnout, Researchers Say," NBC News, October 7, 2020.

Opinion: "Op-Ed: Liberals Skeptical of Joe Biden Should Look to the Example of Jerry Brown," Sara Sadhwani (with Manuel Pastor), Opinion, Los Angeles Times, July 21, 2020.

Opinion: "Will Asian Americans Make California Even Bluer in November?," Sara Sadhwani, Monkey Cage, The Washington Post, June 5, 2018.

Opinion: "A California Congressional Race Reveals Political Divisions in the Asian-American Community," Sara Sadhwani, Vox, October 16, 2017.

Publications

"Candidate Ethnicity and Latino Voting in Co-partisan Elections" California Journal of Politics and Policy 10, no. 2 (2018).

Examines the vote choice of Latino voters under the constraint of California's top two primary. Finds a strong level of support for Latino Republican candidates suggesting that a candidate's ethnicity may inform voters' strategic decision making in co-partisan elections.

"Asian American Mobilization: The Effect of Candidates and Districts on Asian American Voting Behavior" Political Behavior (2020).

Analyzes Asian American voter turnout in the presence of a co-ethnic candidate. I find variations in voting behavior by national origin.

"Structuring Good Representation" (with Jane Junn). Political Science Now 51, no. 2 (2018).

Argues that electoral innovations in California such as the switch to a Top Two Primary, term limits and a citizens redistricting commission, combined with demographic change led to increases in Asian American and Latino representation in the state legislature and U.S. Congress.