Self-Imposed Term Limits
Abstract
In 'Reconciling voters' behavior with legislative term limits,' Dick and Lott argue that since more senior representatives are better at rent-seeking, there is an inefficient tendency to re-elect incumbents. In this model, term limits are preferred collectively by constituencies, even though no constituency would independently oust its incumbent representative. However, many term limits are unilaterally self-imposed (in particular the 22nd amendment limiting presidents' term to two), and their model cannot explain these limits. In this comment, the author suggests that term limits may be self-imposed by risk-averse voters, who prefer cycling between left and right wing candidates to a once-and-for-all election that imposed a candidate of a single ideology on the entre electorate. The market failure that makes term limits helpful is that out of power minorities cannot bribe the median voter. Copyright 1997 by Kluwer Academic PublishersDownload Info
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Bibliographic Info
Article provided by Springer in its journal Public Choice.
Volume (Year): 93 (1997)
Issue (Month): 3-4 (December)
Pages: 389-94
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Web page: http://www.springerlink.com/link.asp?id=100332
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Citations
Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.Cited by:
- Smart, Michael & Sturm, Daniel, 2004.
"Term limits and electoral accountability,"
Economic History Working Papers
20283, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
- Michael Smart & Daniel M. Sturm, 2006. "Term Limits and Electoral Accountability," CEP Discussion Papers dp0770, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
- Smart, Michael & Sturm, Daniel M, 2004. "Term Limits and Electoral Accountability," CEPR Discussion Papers 4272, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
- Paola Conconi & Nicolas Sahuguet, .
"Policymakers' horizon and the sustainability of international cooperation,"
ULB Institutional Repository
2013/98547, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
- Conconi, Paola & Sahuguet, Nicolas, 2009. "Policymakers' horizon and the sustainability of international cooperation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(3-4), pages 549-558, April.
- Edward J. Lopez & R. Todd Jewell, 2005.
"Strategic Institutional Choice: Voters, States, and Congressional Term Limits,"
Public Economics
0512006, EconWPA.
- Edward López & R. Jewell, 2007. "Strategic institutional choice: Voters, states, and congressional term limits," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 132(1), pages 137-157, July.
- Mark Schelker, 2012. "The influence of auditor term length and term limits on US state general obligation bond ratings," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 150(1), pages 27-49, January.
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