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Federal Structure and Party Politics as Simultaneous Opportunity and Constraint: Transnational Political Engagement of overseas Americans

Klekowski von Koppenfels, Amanda (2020) Federal Structure and Party Politics as Simultaneous Opportunity and Constraint: Transnational Political Engagement of overseas Americans. In: Kernalegenn, Tudi and van Haute, Emilie, eds. Political Parties Abroad: A New Arena for Party Politics. Routledge Studies on Political Parties and Party Systems . Routledge, Abingdon-on-Thames. ISBN 978-0-367-85785-1. (KAR id:79611)

Abstract

This chapter examines the differential inclusion of overseas Americans in the American polity; overseas Americans are included, and vote, as individual citizens in all primary and general elections but are recognized as a distinct overseas constituency only in the Democrats Abroad Global Primary. Constitutional, federal and state law shapes this differential American inclusion. The right to vote was extended on the basis of a constitutional right to electoral equality. On the other hand, an overseas constituency in which US citizens voted for dedicated representatives would be possible only with a constitutional amendment. In a state with a strong sense of itself as an immigration country, and not as a state with a diaspora identity, such an amendment is unlikely. The contestation of the profile of the overseas American population feeds into this discussion. Party-led inclusion is the strongest way in which overseas US citizens can be included as a distinct constituency.

Item Type: Book section
Uncontrolled keywords: overseas Americans; migrants; Democrats Abroad; external voting; voting from abroad
Subjects: J Political Science > JA Political science (General)
J Political Science > JV Colonies and colonization. Emigration and immigration. International migration
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Politics and International Relations
Depositing User: Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels
Date Deposited: 17 Jan 2020 16:07 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Feb 2021 14:10 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/79611 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Klekowski von Koppenfels, Amanda.

Creator's ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8322-3693
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