Effects of council size under a majority bonus: Evidence from French municipalities

Benoît Le Maux (), Mara Vidali () and Pauline Mille ()
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Benoît Le Maux: CREM - Centre de recherche en économie et management - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UR - Université de Rennes - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Mara Vidali: CREM - Centre de recherche en économie et management - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UR - Université de Rennes - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Pauline Mille: CREM - Centre de recherche en économie et management - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UR - Université de Rennes - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

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Abstract: This study examines the impact of council size on local representation and governance using data from over 7000 French municipalities, where proportional voting with a majority bonus applies. We exploit the discontinuities created by population thresholds defining the number of seats. Our findings show that assembly size does not significantly affect the number of parties running or winning seats, voter turnout, or public spending. However, larger assemblies affect the distribution of seats, reducing disproportionality and increasing party fragmentation. We demonstrate that these effects are driven by the majority bonus in the electoral system.

Keywords: Local public sector; Decentralization; Legislature size; Representative democracy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Published in European Journal of Political Economy, 2026, 93, pp.102817. ⟨10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2026.102817⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05554361

DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2026.102817

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