Stock Ownership and Congressional Elections: the Political Economy of the Mutual Fund Revolution

C-Tier
Journal: Economic Inquiry
Year: 2008
Volume: 46
Issue: 3
Pages: 454-479

Score contribution per author:

0.505 = (α=2.02 / 2 authors) × 0.5x C-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

We find that higher stock ownership rates are linked to an upward shift in the Republican share of the House popular vote since the late 1980s, consistent with theories that property interests affect voting. To proxy for discontinuous stock ownership rates, we use equity mutual fund costs, which have fallen, are negatively correlated with stock ownership rates and the Republican vote share in the long run, and help explain short‐run changes along with midterm elections, economic conditions, and presidential popularity. Findings suggest that the major parties’ shares of the House popular vote will fluctuate around 50% until other factors trigger a political realignment. (JEL D72, G11)

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:bla:ecinqu:v:46:y:2008:i:3:p:454-479
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25