Federal Politics Research Articles

Corporate investment and political federalism: does judicial efficiency matter?

The study exploits the variation in judicial efficiency across Indian states together with the heterogeneity in firm financing constraint and distress indicator to estimate the effect on firm investment. Using data for 2001–2013, we show that financially constrained firms registered in states with high judicial inefficiency exhibit lower investment, an effect that is exacerbated during the crisis. As well, investment is lower for distressed firms in states with high labour activism. Taken together, the evidence is consistent with the law and finance literature, and suggests that quality of contract enforcement and heterogeneity in creditor protection plays a key role in influencing firm investment.

Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism, and Unequal Politics. By Jamila Michener. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2018. 236p. $84.99 cloth, $24.99 paper.

Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism, and Unequal Politics. By Jamila Michener. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2018. 236p. $84.99 cloth, $24.99 paper.

La instrumentación de la reforma constitucional de 2017 en materia de justicia laboral y de seguridad social en México

Tras de un siglo de mantener la justicia tripartita como dogma jurídico en el Derecho del Trabajo, el Estado mexicano se aleja de él optando, en base a los resultados obtenidos en los «Diálogos por la Justicia Cotidiana», por cambiar de operador en materia de justicia, traspasando tan delicada función al Poder Judicial Federal y Locales en sus respectivas competencias y condenando a desaparecer a las Juntas de Conciliación y Arbitraje dependientes del Poder Ejecutivo, quitando así todo tinte político en la resolución de los conflictos laborales. Este cambio radical, el más trascendente en un siglo de existencia del mítico artículo 123 de nuestra Constitución Política Federal, tendrá muchos problemas en su instrumentación legal, al punto que ya se venció el plazo fijado para ello en el Decreto de reforma publicado el 24 de febrero de 2017.

Unpacking Political Identity: Race, Ethnicity, and Nationhood in a Federal Political System

What distinguishes race, ethnicity, and nationhood as categories of political identity? How can we explore the commonalities and dissimilarities between these three categories of political identity? Most of the existing scholarship has looked at one or another of these forms of identity in isolation. I compare these three forms of identity by examining one case of peoplehood within the federal political system that we call the United States. Puerto Ricans are an ideal case study because they are a group that can exhibit racial, ethnic, or national political identities, depending on where they find themselves in the United States. Puerto Ricans on the island have a primary political identity that reflects their sense of nationhood. This is characteristic of sub-state national societies in multinational democracies. Puerto Ricans in the continental United States are racialized and ethnicized by the mainstream, majority culture. Their primary political identities become racial or ethnic, although this takes place through a process of contestation, negotiation, and relativization.

The mother of all effects? Stability and change in Greens party identification in Australia

ABSTRACT The Australian Greens only formed as a national party in 1992. Here, some of the first young Australians able to inherit Greens party identity are examined. Analysis of youth cohort data from the state of Queensland, spanning 5 years (n = 2160; aged 17–22), shows that parental political affiliation (especially maternal affiliation) strongly influences Greens party identification as it does for the major parties. However, Greens are less likely than major party identifiers to exhibit stable party allegiances over time. Defections between Greens and Labor are also far more likely than between these parties and conservative parties (Liberals or Nationals). The comparatively recent formation of the Australian Greens accounts for the relative instability of Greens identity over time. Nevertheless, inter-generational transmission of Greens identity should translate into a relatively stable electoral base for the Greens, helping ensure they remain an influential presence in Australian federal politics.

Political alignments and distributive politics at the municipal level in federal countries

Governors and mayors contribute with necessary political inputs to federal politics, and the president may have no incentive or choice to exclude any of them from their alliances. When presidents have money to distribute with discretion, they do not allocate it uniformly; there are differences in funds allocated between and within provinces, as well as different municipalities within them. The objective of this paper is to explain these differences and particularly how this distribution works in countries where municipalities are not autonomous and the president cannot bypass governors. Transfer distribution patterns at two municipal levels will be explored in order to show that partisan alignments between mayors and presidents (along with other political variables, such as mayors being up for reelection) can be analyzed to explain differences in funding levels. The new generation of studies on federalism focuses on different variables, beyond the functioning of formal institutions. Within these variables, the role of governors – namely the fact that they are powerful and important to presidents – has been widely documented by scholarly research. However, the role of mayors has been less thoroughly explored. To generate evidence on how both governors and mayors are important to presidents, it was built an original database that, for the first time, studied distribution in all Argentine municipalities for a period of eight years (2002-2009) to help fll this vacuum.

Frankenstein in Grozny: vertical and horizontal cracks in the foundation of Kadyrov’s rule

Many scholars have suggested that organized violence in Chechnya has ended, and that Russia’s Chechenization policy and Ramzan Kadyrov’s presidency deserve the credit. We suggest that Putin has created a Frankenstein-like ruler over whom he risks losing control. As a result, the conflict only appears resolved, and we draw attention to both vertical and horizontal cracks in the foundation of Kadyrov’s rule that could lead to renewed violence. Vertically, the Chechen strongman and his growing clout in regional and federal politics have antagonized Russian siloviki. Horizontally, thousands of Chechens appear to be in a state of postponed blood feud toward Kadyrov, his clan, and the kadyrovtsy, his personal army. Backed by President Putin’s personal support, Kadyrov has put in motion a brutal machine of persecution over which some signs indicate he has lost control. Fear of extermination at the hands of the Kadyrov and his personal army has kept most prospective avengers at a bay. Once President Putin’s support wanes, locals will retaliate against Kadyrov and against Russian troops stationed in the republic, and Russian law enforcement circles will openly challenge Kadyrov’s rule. Putin’s support is only likely to wither if the costs of continued support (which grow with Kadyrov’s increasing independence) exceed the benefits (derived from an enforced peace). Either a renewed insurgency or ever more recalcitrant behavior would demonstrate a level of interest misalignment that could induce Putin to withdraw his support. Such a turn of events would render these horizontal and vertical cracks in the foundation of Kadyrov’s rule more noticeable and would likely to cause the frozen conflict in Chechnya to thaw, leading to a new civil war.

Characteristics of Federal Political Contributions of Self-Identified Radiologists Across the United States

PurposeAs federal legislation increasingly influences health care delivery, the impact of election funding has grown. We aimed to characterize US radiologist federal political contributions over recent years. MethodsAfter obtaining 2003 to 2016 finance data from the Federal Election Commission (FEC), we extracted contribution data for all self-identified radiologists. Contributions were classified by recipient group and FEC-designated political party and then analyzed temporally and geographically, in aggregate, and by individual radiologist. ResultsBetween 2003 and 2016, the FEC reported 35,408,584 political contributions. Of these, 36,474 (totaling $16,255,099) were from 7,515 unique self-identified radiologists. Total annual radiologist contributions ranged from $480,565 in 2005 to $1,867,120 in 2012. On average, 1,697 radiologists made political contributions each year (range 903 in 2005 to 2,496 in 2016). On average, contributing radiologists gave $2,163 ± $4,053 (range $10-$121,836) over this time, but amounts varied considerably by state (range $865 in Utah to $4,325 in Arkansas). Of all radiologist dollars, 76.3% were nonpartisan, with only 14.8% to Republicans, 8.5% to Democrats, and 0.4% to others. Most radiologist dollars went to political action committees (PACs) rather than candidates (74.6% versus 25.4%). Those PAC dollars were overwhelmingly (92.5%) directed to the Radiology Political Action Committee (RADPAC), which saw self-identified radiologist contributions grow from $351,251 in 2003 to $1,113,966 in 2016. ConclusionRadiologist federal political contributions have increased over 3-fold in recent years. That growth overwhelmingly represents contributions to RADPAC. Despite national political polarization, the overwhelming majority of radiologist political contributions are specialty-focused and nonpartisan.

German regional elections: Patterns of second-order voting

ABSTRACTThis paper looks at German regional elections and evaluates the patterns of voting that can be observed in aggregate results and individual behaviour. In the first step, I summarize the characteristic features of political competition in the German multi-level system. I use elections held between 2013 and 2017 to illustrate contextual and election-specific factors that contribute to the observable patterns of voting. In a second step, I evaluate the possible cyclicality of second-order voting using individual data. Based on 139 state election surveys covering 1978 to 2016, I show that the decision-making of German voters changes systematically over the federal election cycle. More specifically, the effect of party identification on vote choice depends on the timing of the election, adding another dimension to the already multi-faceted relationship between Land elections and federal politics.

Social Media in Australian Federal Elections: Comparing the 2013 and 2016 Campaigns

Against a backdrop of substantial and persistent disruption in Australian federal politics, this article examines the uses of Twitter in campaigning in the 2013 and 2016 federal elections. We comprehensively tracked the tweets posted by, and directed at, all candidates during the final 2 weeks of these campaigns, and compare patterns in candidate and audience activity across the two elections. This documents considerable shifts in campaigning strategies, electorate responses, and central themes of the debate from 2013 to 2016; we show that these shifts are in line with the changing electoral fortunes of Australia’s major party blocs during an exceptionally tumultuous period in federal politics.

Ethnicity and nationality among Ethiopians in Canada\u2019s census data: a consideration of overlapping and divergent identities

This article addresses the intersection of ‘homeland’ politics and diaspora identities by assessing whether geopolitical changes in Ethiopia affect ethno-national identifications among Ethiopian-origin populations living abroad. Officials in Ethiopia’s largest ethnically-defined states recently began working to improve diaspora-homeland relations, historically characterised by ethnically-mobilized support for opposition and insurgency. The emergence of an ‘Ethiopian-Somali’ identity indicated in recent research, previously regarded as a contradiction in terms, is the most striking of a series of realignments between ethnicity and nationality. Such realignments reflect new orientations towards the homeland that impact diaspora engagement in politics and development. While diaspora returnees constitute a visible presence in some formerly marginalized areas of Ethiopia—including the historically disputed Somali region—large-sample data on ethnicity and nationality from Canadian censuses suggest that diaspora outreach efforts to historically marginalized groups have not (yet) effected large-scale changes in ethno-national identity, and that ongoing tensions in Ethiopia’s federal politics may have different impacts on the identities of different ethnic populations.

Solar ‘power’: Socio-political dynamics of infrastructural development in two Western Indian states

The growth and development of solar energy, which is so important in the current global context, is determined by political economic factors, and in turn, has varied implications for energy justice. India’s western region presents a complex context within which to examine why these trajectories unfold in particular ways and to what end. This article first situates India’s renewable energy policy within the dynamics of its federal politics. It then focusses on the trajectory of renewable energy development in two Western Indian states, Rajasthan and Gujarat, highlighting how regional particularities and path dependence have shaped the emergence of solar energy, often in ways that run counter to both expected and hoped for results. The idea of energy justice is subsequently introduced as a way to evaluate whether solar energy infrastructural growth in its present form is best serving the multi-pronged needs of climate justice, economic development, and social equity. By combining a political economy of renewable energy that accounts for the political and institutional factors conditioning the growth of solar capacity with the normative arguments embedded in the energy justice literature, this study contributes to a growing understanding of the intersection of solar power and development.

Anti-Partyism in German Independent Local Lists: Empirical Insights from a Membership Study

In the past few decades, independent local lists in German municipalities have become serious competitors to political parties. However, despite their widespread presence and success, party researchers have largely ignored this phenomenon. Empirical evidence concerning the attitudes of their members towards political parties is rare. Thus far, it remains unclear whether their self-described image as non-parties or anti-parties is restricted to the sphere of local politics or accompanies a general rejection of parties in federal politics. First, the article conceptualises anti-partyism and proposes an analytical distinction between their intensity and related political level. It then analyses the consequences of different patterns of local politics and group characteristics as well as individual determinants to explain the degree of anti-party sentiment. This study improves our understanding of independents and whether they promote party democracy or are a product of political dissatisfaction. Based on a cross-sectional postal survey, multi-level regression models are used to test the hypotheses. The results show that anti-partyism is particularly strong towards party politics at the local level, whereas the general legitimacy of party democracy is not questioned in federal politics.

Amateurs versus Professionals: Explaining the Political (in)Experience of Canadian Members of Parliament

In contrast to many democracies that lament the rise of professional politicians, ‘amateur’ politicians have typically dominated federal politics in Canada. What explains this general lack of political experience among Canadian members of parliament (MPs)? This study tests three hypotheses on career development by analysing individual-level data on over 1000 MPs elected to the Canadian Parliament between 1993 and 2015. Conceptualising politics as a career path in its own right, it finds that at the key stages of establishing, maintaining and disengaging from a federal political career, there are specific challenges facing candidates and MPs in the Canadian context that are not significantly ameliorated by the possession of prior political experience. This leaves little incentive for individuals to work in the field of politics itself before standing for federal office.

Defining the Scope of Free Movement of Citizens in the East African Community: The East African Court of Justice and its Interpretive Approach

AbstractFree movement of persons is one of the core tenets of the East African Community (EAC) common market, making it seem like a purely economic project. However the EAC ultimately aims to constitute itself as a political federation. This article argues that the free movement of persons within the EAC should be interpreted in broad terms with the aim of asserting it as a fundamental right of EAC citizens. Such an interpretation should be championed by the East African Court of Justice, whose mandate is the interpretation and application of community law. The court, however, seems to prefer a narrow, textual and cautious interpretive approach that may not necessarily advance the EAC's broader objectives. A human rights-oriented interpretive approach might just be the key to realizing a progressive transformation in the rationalization of the right to free movement within the EAC.

Armut und Schmerz

Poverty is an important problem in Germany. The health effects of poverty can lead to ahigher risk of disease and the arising of chronic affections. On the other hand chronic illness may support the development and continuance of poverty. The context of chronic pain and poverty has not been analyzed so far. We investigated the correlation between chronic pain and poverty. In aprospective manner we interviewed 20patients with pain syndromes during our consultation hour regarding their household income. Further, data from the German Federal Statistical Office were analyzed with respect to the correlation between the incidence of achronic pain diagnosis and household income. At 1546 €, the average household income of the patients studied was below the poverty level. The analyzed data showed that women suffered from chronic pain more often than men did and also had alower income. Another economic inequality was found between Eastern and Western Germany. There was astatistically significant correlation between income and the incidence of the diagnostic codes for chronic pain (R52.1, 2, 9) for men. Our investigation showed the correlation between chronic pain and poverty. Acommitment and cooperation of German medical associations and federal politics is necessary to overcome this sociopolitical issue.

Down but Not Out: The National Education Association in Federal Politics

This research provides new evidence on the political activity and policy-setting agenda of the largest national teachers’ union during a time of political change. Using a longitudinal dataset comprised of election outcomes and campaign contributions for all candidates for federal office and the National Education Association’s (NEA) official federal policy positions, I find that NEA Democrat allies have decreased precipitously over time with the election of a Republican majority in Congress. Nonetheless, the NEA still experiences considerable success in congressional roll call votes partly because of the election of a growing contingent of Republican allies in the House and Senate.

An earthly search for gold's cosmic origins.

Last month, astronomers wowed the world when they announced that they had seen two neutron stars merge, apparently creating heavy elements such as gold and platinum and spewing them into space. Nuclear physicists at Michigan State University in East Lansing also cheered the find, as they are building an atom smasher, the $730 million Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB), that could decipher exactly how those elements were forged in the inferno. The elements presumably emerge from the so-called rapid neutron process, or r-process, in which a nucleus gains weight by gobbling up one neutron after another. At the same time, a nucleus can change its chemical identity through radioactive β decay, which turns neutrons into protons and bumps the nucleus up the periodic table of elements. Exactly how a nucleus evolves depends on the speed of the decay and the probability that it will soak up another neutron. Those parameters are poorly known. FRIB aims to change that by making as many of the neutron-laden nuclei as possible and measuring their masses and lifetimes. First proposed in 1999, the project didn9t get the greenlight for construction from the Department of Energy until 2014. Now, however, the project is ahead of schedule and on budget, and it should be up and running by 2021—if federal budget politics do not slow it down.

Public opinion and policy responsiveness: the case of same-sex marriage in Australia

ABSTRACTThis article examines congruence between public opinion and politicians’ positions on same-sex marriage in the Australian House of Representatives from 2012 to 2016. In contrast median voter theorem and other office-motivated frameworks, Australian federal politicians have largely ignored majority opinion, which has been supportive of same-sex marriage for a decade. Using a unique dataset (n = 601,550) of voter preferences collected during the 2013 federal election, and collated Hansard and media data, we compare public opinion on same-sex marriage with politicians’ public positions. We find a status quo bias, suggesting the influence of special interest groups in this policy area. Yet, we also find parliamentarians are responsive to public opinion once it reaches a critical level, and that very low opposition to same-sex marriage in an electorate predicts policy support from its MP, which varies by party and over time.

The Political Representation of Asian-Australian Populations since the End of White Australia

The racial and ethnic landscape in Australia has changed markedly since the beginning of the postwar migration period in which migrants arrived from Europe, and later from Asia in the late 1970s. While Australians with European ancestry have gradually made it into state and federal parliament, there has been less visibility for Australians of Asian descent. This article provides an overview of demographic migration trends and levels of Asian-Australian political representation in state and federal politics, drawing on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and parliamentary websites. In doing so, we reflect on why political representation of Asian-Australian populations appears to be lagging so far behind.