IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ags/feemwp/327326.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Political Consequences of Green Policies: Evidence from Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Colantone, Italo
  • Di Lonardo, Livio
  • Margalit, Yotan
  • Percoco, Marco

Abstract

For many governments, enacting green policies is a priority, but such policies often impose on citizens substantial and uneven costs. How does the introduction of green policies a˙ect voting? We study this question in the context of a major ban on polluting cars introduced in Milan, which was strongly opposed by the populist right party Lega. Using several inferential strategies, we show that owners of banned vehicles — who incurred a median loss of €3,750 — were significantly more likely to vote for Lega in the subsequent elections. Our analysis indicates that this electoral change did not stem from a broader shift against environmentalism, but rather from disaffection with the policy’s uneven pocketbook implications. In line with this pattern, recipients of compensation from the local government were not more likely to switch to Lega. The findings highlight the central importance of distributive consequences in shaping the political ramifications of green policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Colantone, Italo & Di Lonardo, Livio & Margalit, Yotan & Percoco, Marco, 2022. "The Political Consequences of Green Policies: Evidence from Italy," FEEM Working Papers 327326, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:feemwp:327326
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.327326
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/327326/files/NDL2022-028.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.22004/ag.econ.327326?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sara Maestre-Andrés & Stefan Drews & Jeroen van den Bergh, 2020. "Perceived fairness and public acceptability of carbon pricing: a review of the literature," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(9), pages 1186-1204, July.
    2. Leah C. Stokes, 2016. "Electoral Backlash against Climate Policy: A Natural Experiment on Retrospective Voting and Local Resistance to Public Policy," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 60(4), pages 958-974, October.
    3. Robert O. Keohane & David G. Victor, 2016. "Cooperation and discord in global climate policy," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 6(6), pages 570-575, June.
    4. Stefan Drews & Jeroen C.J.M. van den Bergh, 2016. "What explains public support for climate policies? A review of empirical and experimental studies," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(7), pages 855-876, October.
    5. Michael I. Cragg & Yuyu Zhou & Kevin Gurney & Matthew E. Kahn, 2013. "Carbon Geography: The Political Economy Of Congressional Support For Legislation Intended To Mitigate Greenhouse Gas Production," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 51(2), pages 1640-1650, April.
    6. Jon Hovi & Detlef F. Sprinz & Arild Underdal, 2009. "Implementing Long-Term Climate Policy: Time Inconsistency, Domestic Politics, International Anarchy," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 9(3), pages 20-39, August.
    7. Stern,Nicholas, 2007. "The Economics of Climate Change," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521700801, January.
    8. Colgan, Jeff D. & Green, Jessica F. & Hale, Thomas N., 2021. "Asset Revaluation and the Existential Politics of Climate Change," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 75(2), pages 586-610, February.
    9. Italo Colantone & Piero Stanig, 2018. "The Trade Origins of Economic Nationalism: Import Competition and Voting Behavior in Western Europe," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 62(4), pages 936-953, October.
    10. Bechtel, Michael M. & Urpelainen, Johannes, 2015. "All Policies Are Glocal: International Environmental Policy Making with Strategic Subnational Governments," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 45(3), pages 559-582, July.
    11. Marsh, Michael, 1998. "Testing the Second-Order Election Model after Four European Elections," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 28(4), pages 591-607, October.
    12. Michaël Aklin & Matto Mildenberger, 2020. "Prisoners of the Wrong Dilemma: Why Distributive Conflict, Not Collective Action, Characterizes the Politics of Climate Change," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 20(4), pages 4-27, Autumn.
    13. Laura Grigolon & Mathias Reynaert & Frank Verboven, 2018. "Consumer Valuation of Fuel Costs and Tax Policy: Evidence from the European Car Market," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 10(3), pages 193-225, August.
    14. Hazlett, Chad & Mildenberger, Matto, 2020. "Wildfire Exposure Increases Pro-Environment Voting within Democratic but Not Republican Areas," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 114(4), pages 1359-1365, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Südekum Jens & Posch Daniel, 2024. "Regionale Disparitäten in der Transformation: Braucht es ein Update der deutschen Regionalpolitik?," Wirtschaftsdienst, Sciendo, vol. 104(7), pages 457-461.
    2. Gabriella De Sario & Giovanni Marin & Agnese Sacchi, 2023. "Citizens' attitudes towards climate mitigation policies: The role of occupational exposure in EU countries," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 76(2), pages 255-280, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Italo Colantone & Livio Di Donaldo & Yotam Margalit & Marco Percoco, 2022. "The Political Consequences of Green Policies: Evidence from Italy," Working Papers 2022.28, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    2. Italo Colantone & Livio Di Lonardo & Yotam Margalit & Marco Percoco, 2022. "The Political Consequences of Green Policies: Evidence from Italy," BAFFI CAREFIN Working Papers 22176, BAFFI CAREFIN, Centre for Applied Research on International Markets Banking Finance and Regulation, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy.
    3. Italo Colantone & Livio Di Lonardo & Yotam Margalit & Marco Percoco, 2022. "The Political Consequences of Green Policies: Evidence from Italy," CESifo Working Paper Series 9599, CESifo.
    4. Michael M. Bechtel & Kenneth F. Scheve & Elisabeth Lieshout, 2022. "Improving public support for climate action through multilateralism," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    5. Christian Elliott & Steven Bernstein & Matthew Hoffmann, 2022. "Credibility dilemmas under the Paris agreement: explaining fossil fuel subsidy reform references in INDCs," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 735-759, December.
    6. Vona, Francesco, 2023. "Managing the distributional effects of climate policies: A narrow path to a just transition," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    7. Brännlund, Anton & Peterson, Lauri, 2024. "Power politics: How electric grievances shape election outcomes," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    8. Kruse, Tobias & Atkinson, Giles, 2022. "Understanding public support for international climate adaptation payments: Evidence from a choice experiment," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    9. Mireille Chiroleu-Assouline & Mouez Fodha, 2023. "Debt, tax and environmental policy [Dette, taxe et politique environnementale]," Post-Print halshs-04181981, HAL.
    10. Douenne, Thomas & Fabre, Adrien, 2020. "French attitudes on climate change, carbon taxation and other climate policies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    11. Sterner, Thomas & Ewald, Jens & Sterner, Erik, 2024. "Economists and the climate," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    12. Mitsch, Frieder & McNeil, Andrew, 2022. "Political implications of ‘green’ infrastructure in one’s ‘backyard’: the Green Party’s Catch 22?," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 115269, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    13. Adrian Amelung, 2016. "Das "Paris-Agreement": Durchbruch der Top-Down-Klimaschutzverhandlungen im Kreise der Vereinten Nationen," Otto-Wolff-Institut Discussion Paper Series 03/2016, Otto-Wolff-Institut für Wirtschaftsordnung, Köln, Deutschland.
    14. Donatella Gatti & Gaye-Del Lo & Francisco Serranito, 2023. "Unpacking the green box: Determinants of Environmental Policy Stringency in European countries," Working Papers 2023.07, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.
    15. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/6d7es28iae9pjoil7092hs41h3 is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Eder, Christina & Stadelmann-Steffen, Isabelle, 2023. "Bringing the political system (back) into social tipping relevant to sustainability," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    17. Kanberger, Elke D. & Ziegler, Andreas, 2023. "On the preferences for an environmentally friendly and fair energy transition: A stated choice experiment for Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    18. Bez, Charlotte & Steckel, Jan & Naumann, Lennard, 2024. "A Political Backlash to Job Losses in Coal? The Case of Colombia," VfS Annual Conference 2024 (Berlin): Upcoming Labor Market Challenges 302390, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    19. Kantorowicz, Jaroslaw & Collewet, Marion & DiGiuseppe, Matthew & Vrijburg, Hendrik, 2024. "How to finance green investments? The role of public debt," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    20. Mireille Chiroleu-Assouline, 2022. "Rendre acceptable la nécessaire taxation du carbone. Quelles pistes pour la France ?," Revue de l'OFCE, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 0(1), pages 15-53.
    21. Sommer, Stephan & Konc, Théo & Drews, Stefan, 2023. "How Resilient is Public Support for Carbon Pricing? Longitudinal Evidence from Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 1017, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Environmental Economics and Policy;

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ags:feemwp:327326. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: AgEcon Search (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/feemmit.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.