Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

We develop a theory of political competition in legislative elections based upon the notion that majority  party legislators collaboratively influence policy.

Because of this team aspect, a candidate's party label  matters for voters, in addition to his own policy positions.  In equilibrium, candidates may be unable to escape the burden of their party association, and primary voters in both parties can often nominate extremist candidates and still win.

We also show that gerrymandering affects the equilibrium platforms not only in those districts that become more extreme, but also in those that ideologically do not change.