Bringing Home the Bacon: An empirical analysis of the extent and effects of pork-barreling in Australian politics

Andrew Leigh

No 580, CEPR Discussion Papers from Centre for Economic Policy Research, Research School of Economics, Australian National University

Abstract: Which electorates receive targeted funding, and does targeted funding swing votes? To answer these questions, I analyze four discretionary programs funded by the Australian federal government during the 2001-2004 election cycle. Controlling for relevant demographic characteristics of the electorate, those electorates held by the governing coalition received a larger share of discretionary funding, and a larger number of program grants. Among government seats, funding does not appear to have been directed towards those that were more marginal. More discretionary funding – particularly on road-building – was associated with a larger swing towards the government in the 2004 election.

Keywords: elections; local expenditure; voting; targeted funding; pork barreling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 R58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cdm and nep-pol
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (22)

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Journal Article: Bringing home the bacon: an empirical analysis of the extent and effects of pork-barreling in Australian politics (2008)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:auu:dpaper:580

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