Replication data for: Enfranchising Your Own? Experimental Evidence on Bureaucrat Diversity and Election Bias in India

Name	File Type	Size	Last Modified
Data			10/20/2021 10:36:AM
LICENSE.txt	text/plain	14.6 KB	10/12/2019 03:06:AM
README.pdf	application/pdf	165.3 KB	10/12/2019 03:06:AM
officer_results_do.do	text/plain	6.2 KB	10/12/2019 03:06:AM
pstation_results_do.do	text/plain	23.3 KB	10/12/2019 03:06:AM
voter_results_do.do	text/plain	16.2 KB	10/12/2019 03:06:AM

Project Citation:

Neggers, Yusuf. Replication data for: Enfranchising Your Own? Experimental Evidence on Bureaucrat Diversity and Election Bias in India. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2018. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2019-10-12. https://doi.org/10.3886/E113180V1

Project Description

Summary: This paper investigates the effects of polling station administrator diversity on elections in India, using a natural experiment: the random assignment of government officials to teams managing stations on election day, together with surveys conducted with voters and election officers. I demonstrate that changes in the religious and caste composition of officer teams impact voting at the polling station level, causing shifts in coalition vote shares large enough to influence election outcomes. Effects are strongest when officers have greater discretion over the voting process. I also provide evidence suggesting own-group favoritism by election personnel as one relevant mechanism.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms: Natural Experiment; Survey Experiment

JEL Classification:
      C93 Field Experiments
      D72 Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
      D73 Bureaucracy; Administrative Processes in Public Organizations; Corruption
      J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
      O17 Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
      Z12 Cultural Economics: Religion
      Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

Geographic Coverage: Bihar, India

Time Period(s): 2014 – 2015

Universe: Polling stations and random samples of polling station officers and potential voters in the 2014 general elections in two districts in the state of Bihar, India

Data Type(s): survey data; administrative records data; observational data; experimental data

Methodology

Data Source: Polling station electoral returns (Form 20s) from the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Bihar; Author's own surveys of polling stations officers and potential voters; 2011 Census of India

Unit(s) of Observation: Individuals, Polling Stations,

Related Publications

Download this project

Published Versions

V1 [2019-10-12]

Export Metadata

Dublin Core

DDI 2.5

Report a Problem

Found a serious problem with the data, such as disclosure risk or copyrighted content? Let us know.

This material is distributed exactly as it arrived from the data depositor. ICPSR has not checked or processed this material. Users should consult the investigator(s) if further information is desired.