Does less income mean less representation?
We assemble a novel dataset of matched legislative and constituent votes and demonstrate
that less income does not mean less representation. We show:(i) The opinions of high-and
low-income voters are highly correlated; the legislator's vote often reflects the desire of
both.(ii) What differences in representation by income exist vary by legislator party.
Republicans more often vote the will of their higher income over their lower income
constituents; Democratic legislators do the reverse.(iii) Differences in representation by …
that less income does not mean less representation. We show:(i) The opinions of high-and
low-income voters are highly correlated; the legislator's vote often reflects the desire of
both.(ii) What differences in representation by income exist vary by legislator party.
Republicans more often vote the will of their higher income over their lower income
constituents; Democratic legislators do the reverse.(iii) Differences in representation by …
Abstract
We assemble a novel dataset of matched legislative and constituent votes and demonstrate that less income does not mean less representation. We show: (i) The opinions of high- and low-income voters are highly correlated; the legislator's vote often reflects the desire of both. (ii) What differences in representation by income exist vary by legislator party. Republicans more often vote the will of their higher income over their lower income constituents; Democratic legislators do the reverse. (iii) Differences in representation by income are largely explained by the correlation between constituent income and party affiliation. (JEL D31, D72)
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