(iPoster) Wealth and Policymaking in the U.S. Senate

• In Event: Poster Sessions: Legislative Studies & Authoritarian Demands, Compliance, and the Politics of Protest
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: Legislative Studies

Abstract

Do wealthier senators legislate more effectively than their less wealthy peers? Existing research on the U.S. House of Representatives shows that personal wealth structures patterns of legislative effectiveness, but little is known about whether this pattern holds in the Senate, where individual priorities and egalitarian norms may alter the role of wealth. I examine whether wealth influences the progress of sponsored bills and whether such effects depend on majority-party status, committee roles, or seniority. This study tests whether economic inequality among legislators produces similar or distinct patterns across chambers, and to assess how personal resources intersect with institutional design in shaping democratic representation.

Author

• Darrian Stacy, The United States Naval Academy