Template-Type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Title: Paying Off Populism: How Regional Policies Affect Voting Behavior
Author-Name: Robert Gold
Author-Email: 
Author-Name: Jakob Lehr
Author-Email:

Classification-JEL: D72, H54, R11, R58
Keywords: Populism, Regional Policies, European Integration, Regression Discontinuity Design

Abstract: This paper shows that regional policies can decrease populist support. We focus on the
"development objective" ("Objective-1") of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF),
meant to support lagging-behind regions. For causal inference, we exploit three sources
of quasi-exogenous variation in a Regression-Discontinuity-Design (RDD), a Difference-in-
Differences framework (DiD), and with matching techniques. Using NUTS3-level panel data
on the outcomes of elections to the EU parliament, observed over the period 1999-2019, we
consistently find that Objective-1 transfers reduces the vote share of right-fringe parties by
about 2.5 pp. Left-fringe party support is not affected. Complementary analyses of individual-level
survey data from the Eurobarometer show that the European Union’s regional policy
increases trust in democratic institutions and decreases discontent with the EU.

Note: 
Length: 47
Creation-Date: 2025-01
Revision-Date: 
File-URL: https://www.crctr224.de/research/discussion-papers/archive/dp638
File-Format: application/pdf
Handle: RePEc:bon:boncrc:CRCTR224_2025_638