IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/gra/wpaper/21-10.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The redistributive effects of enfranchising non-citizens. Evidence from Sweden

Author

Listed:
  • Iñigo Iturbe-Ormaetxe

    (: Departamento de Fundamentos del An·lisis EconÛmico (FAE), Universidad de Alicante.)

  • Santiago Sanchez-Pages

    (King's College London.)

  • Angel Solano-Garcia

    (Department of Economic Theory and Economic History, University of Granada.)

Abstract

We study theoretically and empirically the redistributive effects of extending voting rights to non-citizens. Our model predicts a tax increase when newly enfranchised voters represent a sufficiently large fraction of voters. We study the 1975 Swedish electoral reform that extended voting rights to non-citizens in municipal elections. In the first term after the reform, there was a tax increase that was not repeated in subsequent terms. This increase was stronger the greater the foreign population in the municipality. This effect was concentrated in municipalities where the size of the non-citizen population was large enough to upturn the previous electoral outcome.

Suggested Citation

  • Iñigo Iturbe-Ormaetxe & Santiago Sanchez-Pages & Angel Solano-Garcia, 2021. "The redistributive effects of enfranchising non-citizens. Evidence from Sweden," ThE Papers 21/10, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    • Handle: RePEc:gra:wpaper:21/10
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.ugr.es/~teoriahe/RePEc/gra/wpaper/thepapers21_10.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alesina, Alberto & Murard, Elie & Rapoport, Hillel, 2019. "Immigration and Preferences for Redistribution in Europe," IZA Discussion Papers 12130, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Jack, William & Lagunoff, Roger, 2006. "Dynamic enfranchisement," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(4-5), pages 551-572, May.
    3. Grant Miller, 2008. "Women's Suffrage, Political Responsiveness, and Child Survival in American History," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 123(3), pages 1287-1327.
    4. Razin, Assaf & Sadka, Efraim & Swagel, Phillip, 2002. "Tax burden and migration: a political economy theory and evidence," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 167-190, August.
    5. Daron Acemoglu & James A. Robinson, 2000. "Why Did the West Extend the Franchise? Democracy, Inequality, and Growth in Historical Perspective," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(4), pages 1167-1199.
    6. Ortega Francesc, 2010. "Immigration, Citizenship, and the Size of Government," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-40, March.
    7. Koukal, Anna Maria & Schafer, Patricia & Eichenberger, Reiner, 2021. "Enfranchising non-citizens: What drives natives’ willingness to share power?," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 1088-1108.
    8. Toke Aidt & Peter Jensen, 2009. "Tax structure, size of government, and the extension of the voting franchise in Western Europe, 1860–1938," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 16(3), pages 362-394, June.
    9. Alberto Alesina & Reza Baqir & William Easterly, 1999. "Public Goods and Ethnic Divisions," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 114(4), pages 1243-1284.
    10. Aidt, T.S. & Dutta, Jayasri & Loukoianova, Elena, 2006. "Democracy comes to Europe: Franchise extension and fiscal outcomes 1830-1938," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 249-283, February.
    11. Jim Dolmas & Gregory W. Huffman, 2004. "On The Political Economy Of Immigration And Income Redistribution," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 45(4), pages 1129-1168, November.
    12. Peter Lindert, 2004. "Social Spending and Economic Growth," Challenge, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(4), pages 6-16.
    13. Toke Aidt & Bianca Dallal, 2008. "Female voting power: the contribution of women’s suffrage to the growth of social spending in Western Europe (1869–1960)," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 134(3), pages 391-417, March.
    14. Elizabeth U. Cascio, 2014. "Valuing the Vote: The Redistribution of Voting Rights and State Funds following the Voting Rights Act of 1965," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(1), pages 379-433.
    15. Dan Ferris & Ron Hayduk & Alyscia Richards & Emma Strauss Schubert & Mary Acri, 2020. "Noncitizen Voting Rights in the Global Era: a Literature Review and Analysis," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 949-971, September.
    16. Leal, David L., 2002. "Political Participation by Latino Non-Citizens in the United States," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 32(2), pages 353-370, April.
    17. Toke Aidt & Peter Jensen, 2013. "Democratization and the size of government: evidence from the long 19th century," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 157(3), pages 511-542, December.
    18. Hainmueller, Jens & Mummolo, Jonathan & Xu, Yiqing, 2019. "How Much Should We Trust Estimates from Multiplicative Interaction Models? Simple Tools to Improve Empirical Practice," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 27(2), pages 163-192, April.
    19. Jan Ekberg, 1999. "Immigration and the public sector: Income effects for the native population in Sweden," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 12(3), pages 411-430.
    20. Thomas Fujiwara, 2015. "Voting Technology, Political Responsiveness, and Infant Health: Evidence From Brazil," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 83, pages 423-464, March.
    21. Scheve, Kenneth & Stasavage, David, 2012. "Democracy, War, and Wealth: Lessons from Two Centuries of Inheritance Taxation," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 106(1), pages 81-102, February.
    22. 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.
    23. Kåre Vernby, 2013. "Inclusion and Public Policy: Evidence from Sweden’s Introduction of Noncitizen Suffrage," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 57(1), pages 15-29, January.
    24. Verena Kroth & Valentino Larcinese & Joachim Wehner, 2016. "A Better Life for All? Democratization and Electrification in Post-Apartheid South Africa," STICERD - Economic Organisation and Public Policy Discussion Papers Series 60, Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, LSE.
    25. Holger Stichnoth & Karine Van der Straeten, 2013. "Ethnic Diversity, Public Spending, And Individual Support For The Welfare State: A Review Of The Empirical Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(2), pages 364-389, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Iñigo Iturbe-Ormaetxe & Santiago Sanchez-Pages & Angel Solano-Garcia, 2023. "Contested Elections And The Power Of New Voters: The Impact Of Extending Voting Rights To Non-Citizens," ThE Papers 23/11, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    2. Kammas, Pantelis & Sarantides, Vassilis, 2020. "Democratisation and tax structure in the presence of home production: Evidence from the Kingdom of Greece," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 219-236.
    3. Gonnot, Jérôme, 2022. "Taxation with representation: Understanding natives’ attitudes to foreigners’ voting rights," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    4. Gathmann, Christina, 2019. "Proportional Representation, Political Responsiveness and Child Mortality," IZA Discussion Papers 12729, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Hizen, Yoichi & Kamijo, Yoshio & Tamura, Teruyuki, 2023. "Votes for excluded minorities and the voting behavior of the existing majority: A laboratory experiment," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 209(C), pages 348-361.
    6. Benjamin Elsner & Jeff Concannon, 2020. "Immigration and Redistribution," Working Papers 202024, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    7. Chapman, Jonathan, 2018. "Democratic Reform and Opposition to Government Expenditure: Evidence from Nineteenth-Century Britain," Quarterly Journal of Political Science, now publishers, vol. 13(4), pages 363-404, October.
    8. Jonathan Chapman, 2020. "Democracy, Redistribution, and Inequality: Evidence from the English Poor Law," Working Papers 20200050, New York University Abu Dhabi, Department of Social Science, revised Jun 2020.
    9. Daron Acemoglu & Suresh Naidu & Pascual Restrepo & James A. Robinson, 2013. "Democracy, Redistribution and Inequality," NBER Working Papers 19746, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Gonnot, Jérôme, 2020. "Taxation with Representation: The Political Economy of Foreigners’ Voting Rights," TSE Working Papers 20-1077, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE).
    11. Kammas, Pantelis & Sarantides, Vassilis, 2019. "Do dictatorships redistribute more?," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 176-195.
    12. Rainald Borck, 2018. "Political Participation and the Welfare State," CESifo Working Paper Series 7128, CESifo.
    13. Stahl, Jörg R., 2023. "Changes in the electorate and firm values: Evidence from the introduction of female suffrage in Switzerland," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 386-402.
    14. Aidt, T. & Jensen, P.S., 2007. "The Taxman Tools Up: An Event History Study of the Introduction of the Personal Income Tax in Western Europe, 1815-1941," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 0766, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    15. Kainuma, Shuhei, 2024. "Transition to broader-based politics: The role of suffrage extension in early 20th century Japan," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    16. Alois Stutzer & Michaela Slotwinski, 2021. "Power sharing at the local level: evidence on opting-in for non-citizen voting rights," Constitutional Political Economy, Springer, vol. 32(1), pages 1-30, March.
    17. Olivier Bargain & Victor Stephane & Jérôme Valette, 2022. "Another brick in the wall. Immigration and electoral preferences: Direct evidence from state ballots," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(5), pages 1452-1477, November.
    18. Bisin, Alberto & Verdier, Thierry, 2017. "Inequality, redistribution and cultural integration in the Welfare State," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 122-140.
    19. de Bromhead, Alan & Fernihough, Alan & Hargaden, Enda, 2020. "Representation of the People: Franchise Extension and the “Sinn Féin Election” in Ireland, 1918," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 80(3), pages 886-925, September.
    20. Bertocchi, Graziella, 2011. "The enfranchisement of women and the welfare state," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(4), pages 535-553, May.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    : Immigration; Conflict; Income redistribution; Inequality; enfranchisement.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration

    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:gra:wpaper:21/10. 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: Angel Solano Garcia. (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/dtugres.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.