Political Polarization and Legislative Gridlock: A Comparative High-Frequency Approach

Marina Diakonova, Julia Estefania-Flores, Corinna Ghirelli, Ana Peñalosa, Javier Pérez and Aitana Simó
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Marina Diakonova: Banco de España
Julia Estefania-Flores: Banco de España
Corinna Ghirelli: Banco de España
Ana Peñalosa: Banco de España
Aitana Simó: Banco de España

No 2636, Working Papers from Banco de España

Abstract: We propose a narrative-based approach to construct high-frequency measures of political polarization and legislative gridlock for seven democracies: France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. Our indices reveal that polarization has risen markedly since the Global Financial and Sovereign Debt Crises, with a faster increase in North America than in Europe. Through a range of exercises we show that the two indices respond differently to elections and unified government control, and that the latter weakens the pass-through between political polarization and gridlock. Consistent with the literature, we also find that investment declines following an increase in either index. Together, these high-frequency, cross-country measures provide a new tool for comparative political economy analysis.

Keywords: political polarization; legislative gridlock; textual analysis; cross-country analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 D74 H3 P16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 110 pages
Date: 2026-10
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bde:wpaper:2636e

DOI: 10.53479/44585

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