Ideology, Electoral Incentives, PAC Contributions, and the Agricultural Act of 2014

By: Russell, Levi A.
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Russell, Levi A., Ideology, Electoral Incentives, PAC Contributions, and the Agricultural Act of 2014, Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Volume 43, Issue 2, May 2018, Pages 274-291

This paper examines the effects of interest group Political Action Committee (PAC) spending on the passage of the Agricultural Act of 2014. I use a mixed-process model to examine correlations between ideology, constituent characteristics, and PAC contributions by agricultural and environmental interests and the probability that a legislator voted in favor of the act. I find a positive association between agricultural and environmental PAC contributions and the probability that a legislator voted in favor of the act. Further, I find that legislators representing relatively large rural populations were more likely to vote in favor of the act.