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Full-Text Articles in Comparative Politics
Political Competition And Local Social Spending: Evidence From Brazil, Carew Boulding, David Brown
Political Competition And Local Social Spending: Evidence From Brazil, Carew Boulding, David Brown
David C. Brown
Electoral theories of democracy imply electoral competition insures accountability. Using data on local elections, socioeconomic factors, and municipal budgets from more than 5,000 municipalities in Brazil for the years 1996, 2000, and 2004, we find that municipalities with more competitive elections allocate less to social spending compared to municipalities with little political competition. We argue that previous theory on political competition and public goods obscures the critical role that financial resources play in shaping the dynamics of social spending and political competition. Municipalities with small budgets lack the resources necessary to engineer convincing electoral victories. Where resources are negligible, voter …
Do Political Parties Matter For Turnout? Number Of Parties, Electoral Rules And Local Elections In Brazil And Bolivia, Carew Boulding, David Brown
Do Political Parties Matter For Turnout? Number Of Parties, Electoral Rules And Local Elections In Brazil And Bolivia, Carew Boulding, David Brown
David C. Brown
Does the number of political parties influence voter turnout in developing democracies? Some scholars argue that large party systems facilitate matching voter preferences with a specific party, increasing turnout. Others argue multiparty systems produce too many alternatives, decreasing turnout. In developing democracies, there is debate over whether these institutions matter at all. We argue that party systems do matter for turnout in developing countries, but the relationship between turnout and the number of political parties is conditional on the electoral formula. Under proportional representation systems, large numbers of parties increase turnout. Under winner take all systems, large numbers of parties …