Theoretical Economics
Journal of the Econometric Society
Edited by: Federico Echenique • ISSN (e): 1555-7561 • ISSN (print): 1933-6837
Theoretical Economics: May, 2019, Volume 14, Issue 2
Information and targeted spending
https://doi.org/10.3982/TE2508
p. 373-402
Jon X. Eguia, Antonio Nicolo
We present an electoral theory on the public provision of local public goods to an imperfectly informed electorate. We show that electoral incentives lead to greater spending if the electorate is not well informed. A more informed electorate induces
candidates to target funds only to specific constituencies, which can reduce aggregate welfare.
