Why do some local governments have inclusionary policies for irregular migrants?

Since 2015, a great deal of attention is paid to the role of local governments in the integration of migrants and to local-level activism, particularly in relation to irregular migrants. However, a significant question remains unanswered: Why do some cities enact inclusionary policies and practices for irregular migrants while others do not? Previous research points out the influence of political ideology, local autonomy, city size, economic capacity, diversity, public demand, or the presence of civil society. Still, there is a limited systematic understanding of the factors that shape local policymaking, and how they lead (or not) to inclusive local policies. In this article, we conduct a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) on 13 European global cities. We show which conditions, and their combinations explain local responses toward irregular migrants. Data collection is based on indexes designed by top-tier institutions (e.g., European Commission). Our preliminary results indicate that policy-making for irregular migrants has an explicit link to alliance-building with local civil society organizations. The combination of this alliance building with local autonomy, financial well-being, or the level of migration-related diversity tends to explain the presence of inclusive urban policies for irregular migrants in Amsterdam, Berlin, Barcelona, Milano, and Munich.