Classifying parliamentarians by immigration origin and visibility: Some methodological reflections

Members of minority groups hold comparatively few positions of power, which is notably the case for national parliaments. Under-representation is particularly evident for individuals who are perceived as ‘different’ due to visible traits. Here, we outline in detail how we addressed the search and identification of members of minority groups in a research project in Switzerland. We share our experience and reflection, hoping that future research can build on it. We find that publicly available information typically allows us to identify parliamentarians who would be classified as having a ‘migration background’ in official statistics. For women and parliamentarians at the regional (cantonal) level, identification is more difficult. In many cases, however, publicly available information does not capture self-identification, so we can only provide a list of potential minorities. Focusing on assumed ‘visibility’, we found it useful to differentiate different forms of visibility (physical traits, names, accents), and to recognize ambivalence as a possible category. While we might approximate how voters and party elites perceive candidates, the objective approach cannot replace self-identification.