Does Your Zip Code Decide Your Vote? Moving to Opportunity and Its Impact on Long-term Political Participation

Abstract

Economic inequality is distinctly linked to political inequality. The American political system is meant to provide an avenue to hold elected officials accountable, but this assumption is undermined by the fact that poor communities are less likely to participate in the political process. The literature suggests that exposure to disadvantaged neighborhoods tend to decrease political participation. What happens when people are given the chance to move out of disadvantaged neighborhoods? Drawing on data from the Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing Demonstration (MTO)—a federal program that provided housing vouchers for economically marginalized families in five cities between 1994 and 1998—I test whether moving to low-poverty neighborhoods affected the long-term political behavior of participants, with a focus on youth voter turnout. Contrary to my expectation, I found no evidence that moving to low-poverty neighborhoods improved the voter turnout of those who were children at random assignment. Additional tests reveal that the null effect may be explained by the lack of substantial improvements in long-term outcomes that correlate with higher political engagement. My research illustrates how moving into lower-poverty neighborhoods affects long-term political engagement, a topic that is understudied within the field of political science. In addition, my findings have practical implications on the implementation of housing voucher programs.