Dr. Jessala A. Grijalva is a political scientist who studies democratic exclusion, both its institutional foundations and the lived experience of groups navigating it. Her research reframes American political development through the concept of herrenvolk democracy and examines how Latinos form political identities within an exclusionary system.
Research
Dr. Grijalva's book project, The Herrenvolk State (under consideration at Cambridge University Press and Princeton University Press), argues that exclusion is constitutive of the American regime rather than a deviation from it. She developed the Power-Sharing Index to measure whether political power flows across groups over time, revealing extended periods of near-zero power-sharing that standard democracy indices missed entirely. Contemporary contestations over immigration, citizenship, and the boundaries of political community reflect these same dynamics, as a herrenvolk system confronts the prospect of genuine multiracial democracy.
Dr. Grijalva's book project, The Herrenvolk State (under consideration at Cambridge University Press and Princeton University Press), argues that exclusion is constitutive of the American regime rather than a deviation from it. She developed the Power-Sharing Index to measure whether political power flows across groups over time, revealing extended periods of near-zero power-sharing that standard democracy indices missed entirely. Contemporary contestations over immigration, citizenship, and the boundaries of political community reflect these same dynamics, as a herrenvolk system confronts the prospect of genuine multiracial democracy.
Her behavioral research provides the micro-foundations for this argument. Using comparative cluster analysis and data from the Latino National Survey, she found that binary acculturation models fail to capture the orientations of over 75% of Latino respondents. These hybrid cultural orientations produce systematically different political outcomes, with the largest effects on immigration policy. She is extending this work through a machine learning project on Latino vote choice across the 2016, 2020, and 2024 elections.
Background
Born and raised in South Tucson, Arizona, Dr. Grijalva began her academic journey at Pima Community College. She transferred to the University of Arizona, graduating magna cum laude, before earning her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame in 2024.
Born and raised in South Tucson, Arizona, Dr. Grijalva began her academic journey at Pima Community College. She transferred to the University of Arizona, graduating magna cum laude, before earning her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame in 2024.
Current Work & Recognition
Dr. Grijalva is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame. She serves as Co-Principal Investigator of a $100,000 Democracy Initiative grant, leading interdisciplinary research on multiracial democracy. Her work has been supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.
Dr. Grijalva is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame. She serves as Co-Principal Investigator of a $100,000 Democracy Initiative grant, leading interdisciplinary research on multiracial democracy. Her work has been supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.