Tatishe M. Nteta
Provost Professor of Political Science / Director of UMass Poll | University of Massachusetts Amherst
Amherst, MA, UNITED STATES
Tatishe Nteta's research lies at the intersection of the politics of race and ethnicity, public opinion, and political behavior.
Expertise (5)
Political Polls
American Politics
Politics and Political Analysis
Race Culture and Ethnicity
Polling
Biography
Tatishe Nteta directs the UMass Amherst Poll, combining the latest Internet polling technology, conducted through YouGov, with leading political science expertise in both Massachusetts and national affairs. Nteta’s research interests lie at the intersection of the politics of race and ethnicity, public opinion and political behavior. His work examines the impact of changing demographics and shifts in the sociopolitical incorporation of racial minorities on the contours of American race relations, policy preferences and participation.
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Education (2)
University of California, Berkeley: Ph.D., Political Science
University of Maryland: B.A., African American Studies and Government and Politics
Links (2)
Select Recent Media Coverage (12)
Kamala Harris's Rebranding Could Make Her 'More Sympathetic'
Newsweek online
2024-07-16
Tatishe Nteta is quoted in an article about efforts to “rebrand” Vice President Kamala Harris using moments that have gone viral on social media. “It relays the fact that this is a longtime politician, a former prosecutor who definitely has a hard edge. But she is able and willing to reflect on the fact that she is both a politician ... but also has a personal life,” he says.
Uncounted Millions: Reparations Now
MSNBC online
2024-03-14
Tatishe Nteta, UMass Amherst professor of political science and director of the UMass Poll, was part of a discussion on the Into America podcast about making reparations to the descendants of enslaved Americans. Nteta says, “About 35 to 38 percent express some level of support for reparations, whether that’s cash payments or housing assistance or educational assistance or even just symbolic in terms of apologies."
In-person early voting slow, while poll shows many are anxious about upcoming presidential primary
New England Public Media online
2024-02-29
Tatishe Nteta, director of the UMass Poll, discusses the anxiety around the upcoming presidential election captured in a recent UMass poll. “It almost feels like this is an opportunity for those elected officials, including both presidents, Biden and Trump, to speak to this issue specifically, and speak to their supporters and tell them that regardless of the outcome, a peaceful transition of power is in the interests of all,” Nteta said.
Viola Fletcher waited 102 years for reparations. She’s still waiting.
The Washington Post online
2023-10-04
Tatishe Nteta, provost professor of political science and director of the UMass Poll, is quoted in an article on the oldest living survivor of the Tulsa Race Massacre and the slow national movement toward reparations. The article cites a UMass poll conducted in January showing that a majority of Americans oppose cash payments for descendants of slaves. “It’s all about deservingness,” Nteta says. “It’s really informed by negative racial views and stereotypes of African Americans, and what they would do with the money.”
Most California voters oppose cash reparations for slavery, poll finds
NPR radio
2023-09-11
Tatishe Nteta, provost professor of political science and director of the UMass Poll, comments on new polling in California that found most voters there oppose paying cash reparations to descendants of enslaved Americans. “California is an important test case,” Nteta said, “If [the effort there to pay reparations] passes, it provides the momentum for the reparations movement that it has been looking for for 200-plus years. But if it doesn't pass, it provides momentum for those who oppose reparations to make the case that in a state as progressive as California, if you can’t pass reparations, the likelihood of passing this at the national level is very low, and in other states is also very low.”
Poll: Trump voters say racism against white Americans is a bigger problem than racism against Black Americans
Yahoo! News online
2023-08-02
Tatishe Nteta, a professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and director of the UMass Poll, who’s been surveying how Americans feel about reparations for two years, acknowledges the low popularity of reparations, but notes it’s bigger than public opinion. “Reparations policy is not necessarily about public opinion,” Nteta told Yahoo News. “It’s about the recognition by a private institution, individuals or governments. It’s about atoning for the mistreatment directed at a particular group.”
How Do You Put A Price On America's Original Sin?
NPR radio
2023-03-27
When he first started polling on reparations three years ago, Tatishe Nteta at the University of Massachusetts Amherst expected money to be the big issue or how to make it all work. But that's not what he found. "A plurality of Americans believe that the problem with reparations - the reason why they oppose reparations is because they don't believe the descendants of slaves deserve reparations. So this is not a question of logistics or economics. It's a question of deservedness," Nteta says.
With political and policy differences, relationship between Wu and Healey may be more complicated than it seems
The Boston Globe print
2022-11-19
“A number of progressives and Democrats assume that Maura Healey is going to be a progressive governor,” said Tatishe Nteta, a pollster and political science professor at UMass Amherst. But her agenda “doesn’t sound like a progressive to me.”
Push to repeal new Mass. driver's license law ramps up
Wall Street Journal online
2022-06-29
Tatishe Nteta, director of the UMass Poll, discusses recent poll results on issues including the economy, presidential candidates for the 2024 election and rights for undocumented immigrants.
California could soon give reparations to Black people. Here's what that could look like
USA Today print
2022-06-17
Tatishe Nteta is interviewed for a story about what it could look like if California chooses to pay reparations to descendants of enslaved people.
Black Support of Black Lives Matter Movement in Decline, Poll Finds
BET online
2022-05-31
In an article citing a “Newsweek” report about support for the Black Lives Matter movement among Black Americans, UMass Poll director Tatishe Nteta says "What is somewhat surprising is that this decline is seen across the board, with ardent supporters of police reforms such as progressives, Democrats, African Americans and young Americans also exhibiting a decrease in their support for these changes."
Black women know how Ketanji Brown Jackson feels
San Francisco Chronicle print
2022-03-28
Tatishe Nteta discusses results of a new national UMass Amherst poll show that more than two-thirds of Republicans believe the House of Representatives should impeach President Joe Biden if the GOP retakes the House in this fall’s midterm elections.
Select Publications (3)
Yes, sexism among Republican voters helped sink Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign
The ConversationTatishe Nteta, Adam Eichen, esse Rhodes
2024-03-12
Tatishe Nteta argues that sexism among Republican voters helped sink Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign.
Family Ties? The Limits of Fathering Daughters on Congressional Behavior
American Politics ResearchMia Costa1, Jill S. Greenlee, Tatishe Nteta, Jesse H. Rhodes, Elizabeth A. Sharrow
2019-02-04
Scholars have long suggested that familial life can affect political behavior and, more recently, have found that fathering daughters leads men to adopt more liberal positions on gender equality policies. However, few have focused on the impact of fathering a daughter on congressional behavior, particularly in an era of heightened partisan polarization.
Politicians Should Know When to Retire
NewsweekTatishe Nteta, Jesse Rhodes, and Adam Eichen
2023-08-07
"There are strong signs that Americans are uneasy with the graying of our nation's leadership. In June, we asked a representative sample of over 1,000 Americans whether they support the passage of a constitutional amendment that would establish a maximum age to serve in the U.S. Senate. We found that over two-thirds of Americans (67 percent) expressed support for this constitutional amendment, with only 11 percent expressing opposition to such a change."
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