Presented By: The Robert Wood Johnson Health & Society Scholars Program
Seminar Presented by Jason Barabas, PhD
Informed Consent: How the Public Learns about Congressional Votes on Health Care and Supports Incumbents Who Represent Constituent Preferences
Leaders who fail to enact the preferences of their constituents risk defeat in elections. The risk seems to be real–legislators receive more votes when they adhere to district sentiments–but how citizens learn about the quality of the representation they receive is less clear. In a two-part study exploiting variations in state-level newspaper issue content as well as facts about legislative behavior in a randomized national survey experiment, we find that the information environment helps Americans re-elect officials who act in their interests. Specifically, across a dozen domestic and foreign policy issues, we observe double-digit changes in incumbent support when citizens encounter information about the roll-call behavior of their Senators or House members. The provision of legislative behavior information well helps citizens reward politicians who vote as they would have and punish those who do not. Our findings underscore the role the mass media plays in promoting political representation.
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