Limit for Expenditure Tightens Election Campaigns

06/20/2017 - 08h28

The adoption of a ceiling to limit politicians' expenditure during election campaigns is positive for democracy, shows a study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a renowned American research center.

The study analyzed the impact of the ceiling in Brazilian municipal elections during the 2016 campaigns and yielded three conclusions: in cities where the limit was stricter, the number of candidates was higher, there were fewer victories of the richest candidate and the rate of reelection was lower.

Researchers analyzed the hypothesis that the stricter limit stimulates the participation of candidates who otherwise would consider it impossible to run against other candidates with higher income.

The study also showed that, in the cities with less restricted expenditure, mayors were reelected on average 11% more than in those that had a stricter limit.

"Our work shows that money does actually count in these cases, and there is a direct impact on the political balance as a whole," says economist Claudio Ferraz, of PUC-Rio.

Translated by THOMAS MUELLO

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