Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/95345 
Year of Publication: 
2009
Series/Report no.: 
LIS Working Paper Series No. 516
Publisher: 
Luxembourg Income Study (LIS), Luxembourg
Abstract: 
The paper investigates the effectiveness of the median voter as a decisive agent in the process of redistribution. According to the previous literature, it tests several assumptions finding interesting results: The positive relation between inequality and redistribution is confirmed, but the median voter theorem seems not to be the driving force of this mechanism. Even if some results support the median voter hypotheses, many others go in the opposite direction. Moreover, results are in support of the presence of a political bias toward rich classes, particularly in non established democracies. Finally, the elasticity of redistribution to poor classes to their income has decreased over the last decade, suggesting a reduction of the policies in support of low income individuals.
Subjects: 
Income distribution
Cash redistribution
Political process
Median voter theorem
Time invariant unobserved heterogeneity
JEL: 
D31
D72
H42
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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