The Interactive Effects of Labor-Led Political Mobilization and Vote Propensity on Turnout: Evidence from Five Elections

The concept of unions as political mobilization groups is not well documented relative to the general determinants of voting behavior and labor's traditional political roles. Specifically, scholars have yet to study the interaction between individuals' propensities to vote and labor-led mobilization. Does labor have a stronger influence on frequent, occasional, or non-voters? Using data totaling 188,551 individuals in Los Angeles over five elections, this paper empirically studies the interaction between vote propensity and mobilization, finding that occasional voters are generally most receptive to labor's efforts, particularly amongst Latinos, and that personal visits and phone calls are successful for occasional voters.