Voting in Open Economies

Abstract

What are the electoral consequences of global market integration? Although recent discussions of politics and markets have much to say on globalization’s implications for policy outcomes, the impact of market integration on representative democracy has received scant attention. This article addresses this omission. We extend the globalization literature to develop two competing hypotheses regarding the influence of open economies on electoral accountability. Predictions are tested using a new data set covering elections from 75 countries over 27 years. Results support a government constraint hypothesis: Exposure to the world economy weakens connections between economic performance and support for political incumbents. By redirecting concerns from the policy implications of globalization and toward its electoral consequences, findings highlight the influence of voter perceptions and of vote-seeking politicians in the politics of globalization.