Building Public Schools in the City: The Role of Neighborhood Context on Voter Support for School Bonds

Abstract

This article explores individuals’ vote choice on a public good, namely, public school bonds. I argue that during a period of significant citywide demographic change the ethnic or racial context of voters’ neighborhoods affects their perception of community and, therefore, school programs. This will then shape their inferences about who are the beneficiaries. I test both racial threat and social contact theories to understand the varying impacts of neighborhood diversity on willingness to support this public good. Using a unique 1996 dataset from Houston Independent School District (HISD), I find that neighborhood context impacts vote choice and argue that this is due to perceptions about the beneficiaries of public schools. Evidence indicates that fears and insecurities in a neighborhood about the rise in a minority group at the city level can directly undermine support for the provision of public goods.