Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/248343 
Year of Publication: 
2021
Series/Report no.: 
WIDER Working Paper No. 2021/129
Publisher: 
The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER), Helsinki
Abstract: 
Vote-buying-or the pre-electoral distribution of private goods in exchange for support at the ballot box-is often blamed for the poor economic performance of many sub-Saharan countries. For instance, vote-buying may undermine accountability and the implementation of sound development policies by pressuring individuals to vote against their own interests. Yet, these effects depend on vote-buying leading to electoral outcomes that would not have occurred otherwise. In this paper, we use Afrobarometer survey data from 17 sub-Saharan elections between 2000 and 2005 to show that, despite its widespread prevalence, vote-buying has limited electoral impact: in only 6 out of 17 elections are gifts-for-votes practices associated with higher turnout than would be expected; yet, in only one election (Nigeria in 2003) did this higher turnout visibly translate into electoral advantage for a particular party. This contrasts with common perceptions about the effectiveness of electoral handouts and the apparent low quality of sub-Saharan African elections.
Subjects: 
national elections
electoral gifts
vote-buying
sub-Saharan Africa
survey analysis
JEL: 
C83
D72
O55
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
ISBN: 
978-92-9267-069-6
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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