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Do Black Politicians Matter? Evidence from Reconstruction

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  • Logan, Trevon D.

Abstract

This paper exploits the history of Reconstruction after the American Civil War to estimate the effect of politician race on public finance. While the effect of black politicians is positive and significant, black officials may be endogenous to electoral preferences for redistribution. I therefore use the number of free blacks in the antebellum era (1860) as an instrument for black political leaders during Reconstruction. Instrumental variables (IV) estimates show that an additional black official increased per capita county tax revenue by $0.20, more than an hour’s wage at the time. The effect was not persistent, however, disappearing entirely once black politicians were removed from office at Reconstruction’s end. Consistent with the stated policy objectives of black officials, I find positive effects of black politicians on land tenancy and black literacy. These results suggest that black political leaders had large effects on public finance and individual outcomes over and above electoral preferences.

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  • Logan, Trevon D., 2020. "Do Black Politicians Matter? Evidence from Reconstruction," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 80(1), pages 1-37, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:80:y:2020:i:1:p:1-37_1
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    Cited by:

    1. Iyigun, Murat & Rubin, Jared & Seror, Avner, 2021. "A theory of cultural revivals," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    2. Jung, Yeonha, 2023. "Formation of the legacy of slavery: Evidence from the US South," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    3. John Dove & William J. Byrd, 2022. "Judicial independence and lynching in historical context: an analysis of US States," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 16(3), pages 639-672, September.
    4. Ferrando, Mery & Gille, Veronique, 2022. "Does the Identity of Leaders Matter for Education? Evidence from the First Black Governor in the US," Other publications TiSEM 1eaa8f31-44b5-4004-95a8-b, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    5. Craig Sylvera, 2023. "Black Mayors and Crime," Working Papers 23-27, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
    6. Phillip W. Magness & Art Carden & Ilia Murtazashvili, 2023. "Gordon Tullock and the economics of slavery," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 197(1), pages 185-199, October.
    7. Bellani, Luna & Hager, Anselm & Maurer, Stephan E., 2022. "The Long Shadow of Slavery: The Persistence of Slave Owners in Southern Lawmaking," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 82(1), pages 250-283, March.
    8. Catalina Amuedo‐Dorantes & José R. Bucheli, 2023. "Immigration Policy and Hispanic Representation in National Elections," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 42(3), pages 815-844, June.
    9. Andrea Bernini & Giovanni Facchini & Marco Tabellini & Cecilia Testa, 2024. "Sixty Years of the Voting Rights Act: Progress and Pitfalls," Economics Series Working Papers 1035, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    10. Winfree, Paul, 2023. "The long-run effects of temporarily closing schools: Evidence from Virginia, 1870s-1910s," QUCEH Working Paper Series 23-02, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's University Centre for Economic History.
    11. Ottinger, Sebastian & Posch, Max, 2022. "The Political Economy of Propaganda: Evidence from US Newspapers," IZA Discussion Papers 15078, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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