Polarization and Electoral Balance

Andrea Mattozzi and David Levine

No 17538, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: We study a model of electoral competition in which two politicians with different office motivations set party platforms and both politicians and grass- roots can provide electoral effort. While the underlying structure of the model is asymmetric, we show that both parties have an equal chance of winning the election. In equilibrium, however, only the most office motivated politician matters for policy polarization and welfare: a kind of Gresham’s law for politicians. The greater this office motivation, the greater is polarization and the lower is welfare. Less interest in politics means also greater polarization and lower welfare.

Keywords: Elections; Politicians; Polarization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022-09
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Working Paper: Polarization and Electoral Balance (2023)
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