Matt A. Barreto

Matt A. Barreto is Professor of Political Science and Chicana/o & Central American Studies at UCLA, with a courtesy appointment in Public Policy at the Luskin School of Public Affairs. He joined UCLA in 2015 after serving as Professor at the University of Washington and founding director of the Washington Institute for the Study of Ethnicity and Race. Professor Barreto earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from UC Irvine in 2005.

His research examines political participation patterns among racial and ethnic minorities in the United States, with particular focus on Latino politics, voting rights, and electoral behavior. He has published extensively on topics including minority mobilization, immigration politics, and racial attitudes. Barreto co-founded Latino Decisions in 2007, a leading polling firm specializing in Latino political opinion, and later established BSP Research which focuses on multiracial survey research.

Analysis of recent publications shows strong emphasis on: (1) racial attitudes and political extremism surrounding the January 6th insurrection, (2) methodological innovations in measuring racially polarized voting, (3) health and environmental policy attitudes in minority communities, and (4) political consequences of immigration policies. His work consistently integrates survey methodology with substantive analysis of contemporary political issues.

Professor Barreto serves as senior advisor to the White House-aligned organization Building Back Together and regularly participates in White House policy briefings. His courses cover racial and ethnic politics, Latino politics, the Voting Rights Act, American elections, and statistical methods in political science.