Community Organizing and Local Political Behavior in Brazil

• In Event: Grassroots Politics: Collective Action, Elites, and Local Political Behavior

Abstract

While many community associations are initially created to assist with public service delivery, they often become involved in coordinating local political behavior, including inviting candidates to speak at association meetings and endorsing candidates. How do community association endorsement and other municipal candidate characteristics shape voter preferences? I analyze an original survey experiment about local political behavior that I conducted in rural communities in Ceara, Brazil in 2019. In vignettes about a hypothetical city council candidate, I randomize characteristics of community association visits and endorsement, promises vs. actual provision of public vs. private goods, candidate employment (farmer, businessman, municipal employee), and candidate location of birth and residence. I find that voters are significantly more likely to vote for a hypothetical city council candidate if the candidate already gave public goods to the community or if the candidate visited the association and was endorsed by the community association president. Promises of public goods have a stronger effect on voting if the candidate visited the community association, even if the candidate was not endorsed by the association president. Voters have a smaller though significant preference for city council candidates who live in the community and who are farmers. This study contributes to our understanding of the effect of rural community organizing and other candidate characteristics on local politics and political behavior.

Author

• Alicia Dailey Cooperman, Texas A&M University