Vote Buying and Redistribution

Guerra, A., Justesen, M.K. Vote buying and redistribution. Public Choice (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-022-00999-x

30 Pages Posted: 30 Aug 2021 Last revised: 14 Oct 2022

See all articles by Alice Guerra

Alice Guerra

University of Bologna - Department of Economics

Mogens K. Justesen

Copenhagen Business School

Date Written: June 1, 2021

Abstract

Vote buying is a form of political clientelism involving pre-electoral transfers of money or material benefits from candidates to voters. Despite the presence of secret ballots, vote buying remains a pervasive phenomenon during elections in developing countries. While prior literature has focused on how vote buying is enforced by parties and political candidates and which types of voters are most likely targeted, we know much less about the behavioral spillover effects of vote buying on citizens’ demand for redistribution and contributions to the provision of public goods. In this paper, we provide evidence on how vote buying causally affects voters’ candidate choice, support for redistribution, and public goods provision. Using data from a laboratory experiment in Kenya, we find that vote buying is a double-edged sword for candidates using clientelist strategies: it attracts votes from those who were offered money and accepted it, but it also leads to negative reactions from those who rejected the offer as well as those who were not offered money. In line with its effect on voting behavior, vote buying has negative effects on subjects’ evaluations of the vote-buying candidate. Vote buying significantly reduces individuals’ stated preferences for more government spending on police and law enforcement—yet, surprisingly, not on other welfare areas such as unemployment benefits or health. We also find that open ballots—but not vote-buying campaigns—reduce individuals’ willingness to contribute to public goods provisions.

Keywords: Vote buying; Secret ballots; Redistribution; Public good; Laboratory experiments

JEL Classification: D72

Suggested Citation

Guerra, Alice and Justesen, Mogens K., Vote Buying and Redistribution (June 1, 2021). Guerra, A., Justesen, M.K. Vote buying and redistribution. Public Choice (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-022-00999-x, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3900541

Alice Guerra (Contact Author)

University of Bologna - Department of Economics ( email )

Bologna
Italy

Mogens K. Justesen

Copenhagen Business School ( email )

Department of Business and Politics
Porcelænshaven 1
Frederiksberg C, DK - 2000
Denmark

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