African Americans began leaving the South in large numbers during Reconstruction. During and after this time period, millions migrated to other regions of the country in search of civil rights and an improved quality of life. Keneshia N. Grant’s new book examines the “Great Migration” of African Americans from 1915 to 1965, when more than six million Black Americans migrated northward in search of economic, political, and social opportunities. She explains that a political analysis of the Great Migration is warranted because “where we live matters… . For Black Americans, the implications of one’s location have always been far more serious than an accent or food preferences. Location has meant the difference between slavery and freedom, discrimination and equality, or poverty and economic opportunity” (p. 3). Noting that the Great Migration “was larger than the preceding California gold rush and dust bowl migrations combined” (p. 37), Grant points out the political significance of this resettlement from mostly rural Southern communities to Northern cities, with a focus on Detroit, Chicago, and New York City. These cities were selected because of the varied political outcomes and different challenges faced by Black residents in each. African Americans have achieved strong levels of political power in Detroit and Chicago but not in New York City, for various reasons.

After chapters on “Party Change and the Great Migration” and “Black Migration in American History,” Grant turns to a discussion of Detroit, New York, and Chicago: African Americans moved to these three cities, among others, because of “push or pull factors…. Push factors were native occurrences that drove migrants out of the South” (p. 51). Pull factors, such as “expanded opportunities for employment and the potential for higher wages created by war-era growth in the economy” (p. 52), also motivated their migration out of the South. Although they continued to encounter discrimination in the North, they nevertheless gained certain political rights that they were vehemently denied in the South (like voting and the right to serve as appointed and elected officeholders), as well as slightly superior educational and job opportunities. In addition, white politicians and the major political parties solicited Black voter support as their numbers increased in these cities. While reading this well-written, comprehensive account, I thought of my own parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles who left small towns in Mississippi in search of better jobs, housing, and political opportunities in Memphis, St. Louis, and Chicago.

This book has several strengths that make it a useful and informative resource for a widely diverse audience. Above all, it reads like a novel and is a very enjoyable read. It provides an interdisciplinary and qualitative analysis of Black migration that focuses on this question: How did the Great Migration influence American politics in northern cities? The Great Migration and the Democratic Party significantly contributes to the fields of political science and African American Studies. Its emphasis on politics enables it to fill a major void, because much of the research on the Great Migration is of a historical and sociological nature. This book is written in the tradition of books like Going North, Migration of Blacks and Whites from the South, 1900–1950 by Neil Fligstein (1981), Black Exodus: The Great Migration from the American South by Alferdteen Harrison (1991), The Promised Land: The Great Black Migration and How It Changed America by Nicholas Lemann (1991), and The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson (2010).

In chapter 1, Grant points out that “research on migrants’ politics is located in works about individual cities or writing about labor and civil rights issues of cities. One of my aims in this book is to create a separate space for consideration of politics during the Great Migration” (p. 13). Grant argues that politicians solicited support from Black voters because they wanted to benefit from the “Black balance of power (BOP)” resulting from the significant Black population growth and voting bloc. Mayoral candidates knew that Black voters would determine election outcomes both in the present day and in the future. Grant uses the results from every mayoral election in each of the three cities in her study from 1915 to 1965, thereby determining the strength of Blacks’ electoral power. This analysis makes an important contribution, because scholars have experienced difficulties in finding this data. Moreover, each of these cities elected its first African American mayor either during the 1970s (Coleman Young of Detroit) or 1980s (Harold Washington of Chicago and David Dinkins of New York City). This book also explains the grassroots mobilization efforts that occurred in the years preceding these elections, examining the challenges faced by Black candidates during a time period when it was almost impossible for them to win citywide elections.

In addition, The Great Migration and the Democratic Party includes several themes that can be a starting point for further scholarship. Future research can examine the migration of Black immigrants to these cities and their impact on Black officeholding after passage of the 1965 Hart-Celler Immigration Act that eliminated quotas restricting Black immigration. Grant briefly mentions West Indian immigrants in the chapter on New York City, but in later years African and Caribbean individuals conducted independent political efforts and attempted to distinguish themselves from African Americans. I also would have welcomed more information about the role of Black women as organizers. Moreover, future research should examine the Black political successes that occurred since the 1960s. Despite the appointments and elections of numerous Black male and female Democrats in the contemporary era, many African Americans believe that the Democratic Party takes the Black vote for granted. Finally, perhaps an analysis of Republican Party participation and activism is necessary because African Americans did not join the Democratic Party until the Franklin Delano Roosevelt administration. Before that time, most were Republicans because it was the party of Lincoln. Were there changes in the Republican Party because of the Great Migration?

Readers of The Great Migration and the Democratic Party will gain new insights about the evolution of the Democratic Party and thereby a greater understanding of why the party operates as it does today. Members of both major political parties who read this book will understand why and how political parties recruit, retain, and support African American voters. Finally, this groundbreaking book will spark debates about several important minority, urban, and partisan political issues.