Driving Support: Workers, PACs, and Congressional Support of the Auto Industry
Research Question
How do the presence of auto workers and PAC contributions influence congressional support for the auto industry?
Main Finding
Legislators are more likely to support particularistic legislation benefiting the auto industry when their districts contain more auto workers, but this effect diminishes on broader or more ideologically contested legislation.
Research Design
The authors analyze roll call votes on major auto-related bills and examine lobbying activity across over 250 pieces of legislation.
Data Employed
Roll call voting data, auto worker population statistics by congressional district, and lobbying records for bills of interest to the auto industry.
Substantive Importance
The study highlights the electoral and representational incentives that shape economic policymaking. It shows that legislators respond not only to campaign contributions but to the concentrated presence of industry workers in their districts.
Research Areas
Legislative Behavior, Interest Groups, Quantitative Methods, Distributive Politics, Electoral Behavior
Citation
@article{autos,
author = {Moore, Ryan T. and Powell, Eleanor Neff and Reeves, Andrew},
title = {Driving Support: Workers, PACs, and Congressional Support of the Auto Industry},
journal = {Business and Politics},
volume = {15},
number = {2},
pages = {137--162},
year = {2013},
}