Information and Strategic Political Polarization

34 Pages Posted: 26 Mar 2007

See all articles by Juan D. Carrillo

Juan D. Carrillo

University of Southern California - Department of Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Micael Castanheira

Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) - European Center for Advanced Research in Economics and Statistics (ECARES); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

Abstract

We develop a model of electoral competition in which two purely opportunistic candidates select their policy position and invest in the quality of their platform. Policy positions are observed and, during the electoral campaign, the press reveals some information about quality. We demonstrate that when information is imperfect and quality endogenous, the Black-Downs median voter theorem fails to hold. For intermediate levels of information revelation, the unique equilibrium is one in which candidates propose policies that differ from the median voter's bliss point. By contrast, convergence to the median voter still occurs when information is (almost) always or (almost) never revealed. Our results also show that a profit-maximizing press may collect more information than optimal from a social viewpoint.

Keywords: Elections, Information, Moral Hazard

JEL Classification: D72

Suggested Citation

Carrillo, Juan D. and Castanheira, Micael, Information and Strategic Political Polarization. Economic Journal, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=973818

Juan D. Carrillo (Contact Author)

University of Southern California - Department of Economics ( email )

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Micael Castanheira

Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) - European Center for Advanced Research in Economics and Statistics (ECARES) ( email )

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United Kingdom