040297 UK Political Economy (MA) (2019W)

Why do people vote? When can representatives exploit their power? Can elections discipline politicians? How can the media influence the political process? In this course we will try to answer such questions both theoretically and empirically.
We start by introducing the workhorse models that will help students conceptualize the political process. We will build on that to analyze citizens’ participation and voting decisions, the incentives and constraints of policymakers, and how conflicts over policy are resolved.
The empirical part of the course will focus on the rise of parties that escape the traditional, bipolar Social-Democrat/Christian-Democrat divide that has dominated European political throughout the second half of the 20th century, and polarization of US politics. The focus will be on the impact campaign strategies, the media, rising trade integration, and immigration on electoral outcomes.