THE MAYORAL CAMPAIGNS OF HARVEY GANTT: PROSPECTS AND PROBLEMS OF COALITION MAINTENANCE IN THE NEW SOUTH

In: Politics & policy, Band 26, Heft 1, S. 221-245

Abstract

Recent United States Supreme Court rulings suggest that future gains in the number of black elected officials will likely derive primarily from districts which are predominantly white. The series of mayoral races (1979 primary and the 1983, 1985, and 1987 general elections) run by Harvey Gantt in Charlotte, North Carolina illuminates the problems and prospects of coalition maintenance in the New South. Specifically, these races suggest that in order to win in non‐black majority districts, it is imperative for black office seekers to formulate a biracial coalition which by its very nature consists of disparate social groups. Although deracialized electoral strategies can facilitate the formation of biracial coalitions by emphasizing issues which transcend racial boundaries, such strategies are not foolproof given the complexity of modern racism. This research addresses a significant void in the political science literature resulting from the lack of scholarly attention to these campaigns, and more generally to biracial political contests and coalition maintenance in the southern region.