The colors of legislative performance: skin tone and effective lawmaking in Mexico

Recent research demonstrates lawmakers are marginalized in the legislative process based on ethno-demographic characteristics such as gender, race and complexion. Is this theoretical explanation generalizable to different sociohistorical contexts? Examining data from the Mexican Chamber of Deputies, we assess the impact that skin color has on access to leadership and legislative effectiveness – controlling for relevant variables, including sex, education and experience. Our results confirm that lighter-skinned deputies have greater access to Chamber leadership and are more effective than darker-skinned legislators. However, our results also indicate the lower legislative effectiveness of darker-skinned legislators can be partially explained by a lack of access to leadership. These findings suggest that traditional mechanisms of inclusion (i.e., quotas or reserved seats) are not enough to redress political underrepresentation, as their positive effect on substantive representation is hindered by the obstacles dark-skinned legislators face once in office.