Seminario 24/06 – Carlos Victoria: What drives fiscal partisanship? Evidence from Spanish local elections

Información

The phenomenon of partisanship in fiscal policy has been a long-lasting topic in the economic literature, from the earlier cross-country studies to more recent empirical analyses at the microeconomic level. However, less is known about the mechanisms that can exacerbate or mitigate this partisan behavior. Using a regression-discontinuity design and a rich electoral and budgetary database containing the results of elections from 1995 to 2023, mayoral affiliations, and municipal budget data, I analyze the impact of the ideology of the mayor on fiscal outcomes in Spanish city councils. Furthermore, I analyze the extent to which several institutional mechanisms can account for this difference. In particular, the influence of the degree and type of municipal policy competencies and the proportionality of the electoral system are studied.