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Trading Places, Trading Platforms: The Geography of Trade Policy Realignment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 2021

Bryan Schonfeld Open the ORCID record for Bryan Schonfeld [Opens in a new window]
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Abstract

What motivates politicians and political parties to shift their positioning on an issue? Focusing on the case of trade policy in countries with advanced economies and plurality electoral systems, I argue that the relative positioning of parties on an existing issue can change even when the preferences of the key actors (voters and politicians) are held constant, and even when party leaders continue to represent the same constituencies. In advanced plurality countries, college-educated voters support free trade, and high-density constituencies are predominantly represented by Left incumbents. As college-educated workers migrate to high-density constituencies in pursuit of higher wages, Left incumbents increasingly embrace free trade, while Right incumbents take more protectionist positions. I provide empirical support for several observable implications of my theory.

Keywords

International traderealignmentpolitical partieseconomic geographyinternal migration
Type
Research Article
Information
International Organization , Volume 75 , Issue 4 , Fall 2021 , pp. 959 - 990
Copyright
Copyright © The IO Foundation, 2021

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