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Counterfiscal policies and partisan politics: evidence from industrialized countries

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  • Fredrik Carlsen

Abstract

According to partisan theories of macroeconomic policy, left-wing parties are more concerned with unemployment while right-wing parties tend to weigh the costs of inflation higher. An implication of partisan theories is that partisan policy differences should depend on the state of the economy, with left-wing governments conducting relatively more expansive policies during recessions. We test whether left-wing governments are more favourably inclined towards countercyclical fiscal policies than their right-wing counterparts using a panel data set of 18 OECD countries from 1980 to 1992. The results are supportive of partisan theories. The structural deficit is significantly higher under left-wing governments when unemployment is high or rising while the ideology of the government party (parties) has no significant impact on the structural deficit when unemployment is low or falling.

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  • Fredrik Carlsen, 1997. "Counterfiscal policies and partisan politics: evidence from industrialized countries," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(2), pages 145-151.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:applec:v:29:y:1997:i:2:p:145-151
    DOI: 10.1080/000368497327227
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    Cited by:

    1. Kallal, Sami & Guetat, Imène, 2020. "Fiscal stance, election year and 2007 crisis, evidence from OECD countries (1980–2017)," The Journal of Economic Asymmetries, Elsevier, vol. 21(C).
    2. Felix Rösel, 2017. "The Political Economy of Fiscal Supervision and Budget Deficits: Evidence from Germany," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 38, pages 641-666, December.
    3. Felix Rösel, 2014. "Co-Partisan Buddies or Partisan Bullies? Why State Supervision of Local Government Borrowing Fails," ifo Working Paper Series 189, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich.
    4. Ondrej Schneider, 2019. "Partisan Fiscal Policy: Evidence from Central and Eastern Europe," CESifo Working Paper Series 8014, CESifo.
    5. Beate Jochimsen & Robert Nuscheler, 2011. "The political economy of the German Lander deficits: weak governments meet strong finance ministers," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(19), pages 2399-2415.
    6. Potrafke, Niklas, 2017. "Partisan politics: The empirical evidence from OECD panel studies," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(4), pages 712-750.
    7. Paulo Reis Mourão, 2007. "Factores de alteração da composição da Despesa Pública: o caso norte-americano," Notas Económicas, Faculty of Economics, University of Coimbra, issue 26, pages 27-41, December.
    8. André Corrêa d’Almeida & Paulo Reis Mourão, 2015. "The Irrelevance of Political Parties’ Differences for Public Finances - Evidence from Public Deficit and Debt in Portugal (1974 – 2012)," NIPE Working Papers 11/2015, NIPE - Universidade do Minho.
    9. Cusack, Thomas R., 1997. "Partisan politics and fiscal policy," Discussion Papers, Research Unit: Economic Change and Employment FS I 97-306, WZB Berlin Social Science Center.
    10. Isabel Argimón & Pablo Hernández de Cos, 2012. "Fiscal Rules and Federalism as Determinants of Budget Performance," Public Finance Review, , vol. 40(1), pages 30-65, January.
    11. Serhan Cevik & Katerina Teksoz, 2014. "Deep Roots of Fiscal Behavior," Journal of Banking and Financial Economics, University of Warsaw, Faculty of Management, vol. 2(2), pages 5-33, November.
    12. Reichenvater, Arno, 2007. "Business Cycles, Political Incentives and the Macroeconomy: Comparison of Models," MPRA Paper 5527, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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