Symbolic Black Representation: An Empirical Test

Objective. Symbolic benefits are among the results attributed to increased black political participation. This research explores awareness of the race of the respondent's state senator, a precondition of receipt of symbolic benefits by the black community. African Americans unaware that their senator is black will receive no symbolic benefits from descriptive representation. Methods. Data were gathered by the Florida Survey Research Center in six southern state senate districts, of which three had black senators. Results. Most blacks—as well as most whites—represented by an African American senator were unaware of that fact. Larger percentages of both groups knew the race of their senator when he or she was white than when black. Respondents who knew their senator's name were more likely to also know the legislator's race. African Americans represented by black senators were significantly less likely to know their legislator's race. Conclusions. Black voters' awareness of the name or race of their black senator is in line with other research into voter knowledge about candidates for other offices. To the extent that having black senators provides symbolic benefits, those benefits may go to a thin strata of the politically active.