Work

Employment, Wages, and Voter Turnout

Year: 2013

Type: article

Abstract: Using county-level data across several decades, and various OLS and TSLS models, we find that higher local wages and employment lower turnout in elections for governor, senator, US Congress and state House of Representatives, but have no effect on presidential turnout. We also find that the share of people voting in one election but not in another on the same ballot increases as local labor market conditions improve. We argue that these results are most consistent with information-based models of voting, and use individual level panel data to show that increased employment lowers media usage and political knowledge. (JEL D72, D83, J22, J31, R23)

Source: American Economic Journal Applied Economics

DOI: 10.1257/app.5.4.111

Authors: Kerwin Kofi Charles, Melvin Stephens

Institutions: National Bureau of Economic Research, University of Chicago, University of Michigan

Language: English

Topic: Electoral Systems and Political Participation

Subfield: Political Science and International Relations

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Decent work and economic growth, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W2021811722