Organized Crime, Violence, and Politics

Alberto Alesina, Salvatore Piccolo () and Paolo Pinotti

The Review of Economic Studies, 2019, vol. 86, issue 2, 457-499

Abstract: We develop a model explaining how criminal organizations strategically use pre-electoral violence as a way of influencing electoral results and politicians’ behaviour. We then characterize the incentives to use such violence under different levels of electoral competition and different electoral rules. Our theory is consistent with the empirical evidence within Sicily and across Italian regions. Specifically, the presence of organized crime is associated with abnormal spikes in violence against politicians before elections—particularly when the electoral outcome is more uncertain—which in turn reduces voting for parties opposed by criminal organizations. Using a very large data set of parliamentary debates, we also show that violence by the Sicilian Mafia reduces anti-Mafia efforts by members of parliament appointed in Sicily, particularly from the parties that traditionally oppose the Mafia.

Keywords: Organized crime; Electoral violence; Political speeches; Voting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 K42 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (50)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Organized Crime, Violence, and Politics (2016)
Working Paper: Organized Crime, Violence, and Politics (2016)
Working Paper: Organized Crime, Violence, and Politics (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:restud:v:86:y:2019:i:2:p:457-499.

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