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The article offers a look at the influence of power struggles on immigrant political socialization and Latino political behavior in Miami, Florida. It examined the voting behavior of Cubans and non-Cuban Hispanics during the 2004 presidential and Florida senate elections. It argued that local context can influence political socialization among Hispanic immigrants. It illustrated that power relations in the local arena can be considered as a factor influencing political socialization in Latino immigrants.

The article examines the impact of battleground designation by presidential campaign strategists in the U.S. on the political activation and involvement of resource poor and peripheral voters, including those in lower income brackets, weak partisans, and African Americans. It is suggested that low income voters are much more likely to develop an interest in the campaign when they reside in states that both parties have targeted as battlegrounds compared to states that both parties have designated as safe.

Demographic trends in American cities point to the increasing numerical dominance of racial and ethnic minority groups. In spite of these changes, corresponding levels of minority empowerment continue to fall short. Durable minority electoral coalitions are essential for the achievement of enhanced political influence, yet the mass attitudes of urban blacks and Latinos -- many of whom see each other as competitors for scarce resources and political power -- appear to stand in the way. Using the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality data from Los Angeles and Boston, this paper explores the individual-level factors -- beliefs and objective status measures -- that correspond with this zero-sum orientation. The main hypothesis is that urban social hierarchy, and the resulting ill will that stems from this social stratification, fuel perceptions of zero-sum competition among minority groups in American cities. Feelings of out-group competitive threat among African-Americans, who are the bottom of the rank order, are particularly influenced by the degree to which they believe that the deck is stacked against them. In general, African Americans exhibit more negative attitudes toward Latino advancement than vice versa. Social status resentment, group consciousness and negative stereotypes fuel these zero-sum sentiments. Status resentment and negative stereotypes are less consequential to Latino beliefs, whereas objective status measures such as income, education and level of acculturation more strongly predict competitive attitudes toward blacks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]