Political Dynasties and the Selection of Cabinet Ministers. Issue 1 (6th July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Smith, Daniel M.; Martin, Shane
• Is Part Of: Legislative studies quarterly. Volume 42:Issue 1(2017:Feb.)
• Page Start: 131
• Page End: 165
• Publication Date: 2016-07-06
• Subjects: political dynasties -- ministerial selection -- Ireland; Legislative bodies -- Periodicals; Parlement; Procédure législative; Système parlementaire; Étude comparée (Descripteur de forme); Périodique électronique (Descripteur de forme); Ressource Internet (Descripteur de forme); 328
• DOI: 10.1111/lsq.12146
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0362-9805

Abstract

Abstract : We investigate whether politicians whose family relatives previously served in parliament and cabinet enjoy a competitive "legacy advantage" in progressing from the backbenches to cabinet. This advantage may stem from two potential mechanisms: a direct effect attributable to the informational advantages of legacies or an indirect effect that operates through greater electoral strength. We evaluate the relative contribution of each mechanism using candidate‐level data from Irish parliamentary elections and cabinets from 1944 to 2016. Our results reveal that politicians with a family history in cabinet do enjoy an advantage in cabinet selection, and that this advantage cannot be attributed simply to greater electoral popularity.