Abstract
This paper evaluates the effects of encouraging the selection of local politicians in India via community-based consensus, as opposed to a secret ballot election. While secret ballot elections prevent vote capture by guaranteeing voter anonymity, consensus-based elections may improve welfare by promoting the exchange of information. Using detailed data on candidates, elected politicians, government budgets and workfare employment at the village level, I show that incentives for consensus-based elections lead to politicians that are younger and more educated, but increase how regressively workfare employment is targeted. These results are supported by qualitative evidence that finds that consensus-based elections are prone to capture by the local elite, as well as the theoretical argument that this capture reduces the need for clientelistic transfers to the non-elite.
Published Version
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