Evaluating Territorial Authority over Policy Responses to the Crisis: A Comparative Study of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This article examines the allocation of authority over policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in 13 advanced democracies. It introduces a new measurement scheme that allows for a systematic cross-country analysis of authority structures. The paper also tracks changes in territorial arrangements over time to investigate their responsiveness to the evolving nature of the pandemic. The analysis reveals four main patterns, including fluctuating (de)centralisation efforts that mirror changes in the urgency of the crisis, institutional incentives for coordination acting as a functional alternative to centralisation, the influence of broader territorial arrangements, and regional resistance to centralisation in politically charged contexts.