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Diversity and the power of the elites in democratic societies: Evidence from Indonesia

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  • Bandiera, Oriana
  • Levy, Gilat

Abstract

This paper analyzes whether political outcomes in local democracies are determined by the preferences of the median -typically poor-agents or whether they reflect the wishes of the wealthy elites. Theory suggests that when politicians belonging to different groups can form coalitions, the wealthy elites’ influence on policy choices is endogenously higher when there is diversity in preferences among the poor. The pattern of public good provision by local governments in Indonesia is consistent with this intuition. Our analysis indeed shows that when individuals have different preferences – here due to different ethnicities – democratic policy outcomes are closer to the preferences of the elites, rather than the preferences of the poor majority.

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  • Bandiera, Oriana & Levy, Gilat, 2011. "Diversity and the power of the elites in democratic societies: Evidence from Indonesia," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(11), pages 1322-1330.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:95:y:2011:i:11:p:1322-1330
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2011.04.002
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    13. Schaeffer, Merlin, 2013. "Ethnic diversity, public goods provision and social cohesion: Lessons from an inconclusive literature," Discussion Papers, Research Unit: Migration, Integration, Transnationalization SP VI 2013-103, WZB Berlin Social Science Center.
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    15. Alastair Langtry, 2024. "Why do elites extend property rights: unlocking investment and the switch to public goods," Papers 2408.17335, arXiv.org.
    16. Andrés Cendales & Jhon James Mora, 2014. "Precarious Democracies, Political Negotiation and Selective Predation," Documentos de Trabajo 12422, Universidad Católica de Colombia.
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