Political Competition and Polarization

Research output: Working paperResearch

This paper considers political competition and the consequences of political polarization when parties are better informed about how the economy functions than voters are. Specifically, parties know the cost producing a public good, voters do not. An incumbent's choice of policy acts like a signal for costs before an upcoming election. It is shown that the more polarized the political parties the more distorted the incumbent's policy choice.
Original languageEnglish
PublisherDepartment of Economics, University of Copenhagen
Number of pages28
Publication statusPublished - 1996

ID: 2984037