Question

which groups are over-represented and which are under-represented in state legislatures?

Answer 1

In Delaware, whites account for 90 percent of all state legislators, and just 69 percent of the population, a 21-point disparity. In Alaska, 85 percent of the legislature is white, 19 points higher than the state population. The average state’s population is 77 percent white, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The average state legislature is 82 percent white. African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, and Native Americans are all chronically underrepresented, even in states where they make up significant percentages of the population. Hispanics make up a greater share of the population than they do a share of state legislators in all 50 states; Asian and Pacific Islanders are overrepresented in just two states. States with the largest percentages of Native American residents, like Alaska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and South Dakota, elect disproportionally few Native Americans to legislatures. An example would be where it has been found that black and Hispanic physicians practice in areas with larger black and Hispanic populations and care for more black and Hispanic patients, respectively than other physicians.