Social Ideology and Taxes in a Differentiated Candidates Framework

Many observers argue that political polarization, particularly on social and cultural issues, has increased in the United States. How does this influence the political competition on economic issues? We analyze this question using a framework in which two office-motivated candidates differ in their...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American economic review 2014-01, Vol.104 (1), p.308-322
Main Authors: Krasa, Stefan, Polborn, Mattias
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abortion
Candidates
Competition
Conservatism
Conservatives
Culture
Economic models
Economic policy
Elections
Equilibrium
Government spending
Ideology
Income taxes
Liberalism
Liberals
Political activism
Political candidates
Political parties
Politics
Public expenditure
Public goods
Radicalism
Shorter Papers
Statistical analysis
Tax rates
Taxes
U.S.A
Voter behavior
Voters
Voting
Voting behavior
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Summary:Many observers argue that political polarization, particularly on social and cultural issues, has increased in the United States. How does this influence the political competition on economic issues? We analyze this question using a framework in which two office-motivated candidates differ in their fixed ideological position and choose a level of government spending to maximize their vote share. In equilibrium, candidates cater to a set of swing voters who contain socially conservative and economically-liberal voters, as well as socially-liberal and economically-conservative voters. We analyze how voters' cultural preferences and candidates' cultural positions influence equilibrium economic positions.
ISSN:0002-8282
1944-7981
DOI:10.1257/aer.104.1.308