Abstract
Can information and communication technologies help citizens monitor their elections? We analyze a large-scale field experiment designed to answer this question in Colombia. We leveraged Facebook advertisements sent to over 4 million potential voters to encourage citizen reporting of electoral irregularities. We also cross-randomized whether candidates were informed about the campaign in a subset of municipalities. Total reports, and evidence-backed ones, experienced a large increase. Across a wide array of measures, electoral irregularities decreased. Finally, the reporting campaign reduced the vote share of candidates dependent on irregularities. This light-touch intervention is more cost-effective than monitoring efforts traditionally used by policymakers.
JEL codes
- C93: Field Experiments
- D12: Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
- D72: Political Processes: Rent-Seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
- D83: Search • Learning • Information and Knowledge • Communication • Belief
- O17: Formal and Informal Sectors • Shadow Economy • Institutional Arrangements
Reference
Mateo Montenegro, and Natalia Garbiras-Diaz, “All Eyes on Them: A Field Experiment on Citizen Oversight and Electoral Integrity”, American Economic Review, vol. 112, n. 8, August 2022, pp. 2631–2668.
Published in
American Economic Review, vol. 112, n. 8, August 2022, pp. 2631–2668