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Does Affirmative Action in Politics Hinder Performance? Evidence from India

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  • Sabyasachi Das

    (Department of Economics, Ashoka University
    Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi)

  • Rajas Saroy

    (Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi)

Abstract

We examine how performance of elected representatives, as measured by delivery of public goods, is affected by affirmative action in elections, i.e., imposing quota in elections for one population group. We show both theoretically and empirically, using randomized electoral quotas for a caste group (OBCs) in India, that when group identities are salient and group sizes are asymmetric, affirmative action may in fact increase electoral competition and consequently, improve leader’s performance. The result challenges the notion that equity promotion must necessarily come at the cost of “efficiency.†It further justiï¬ es the electoral quota policy in India of targeting the jurisdictions where the group is numerous.

Suggested Citation

  • Sabyasachi Das & Rajas Saroy, 2018. "Does Affirmative Action in Politics Hinder Performance? Evidence from India," Working Papers 03, Ashoka University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ash:wpaper:03
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Das, Sabyasachi & Dutta, Souvik & Sarkar, Abhirup, 2021. "Political economy of third party interventions," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Electoral competition;

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • D78 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Positive Analysis of Policy Formulation and Implementation
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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