The Spousal Bump: Do Cross-Ethnic Marriages Increase Political Support in Multiethnic Democracies?. (April 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Adida, Claire L.; Combes, Nathan; Lo, Adeline; Verink, Alex
• Is Part Of: Comparative political studies. Volume 49:Number 5(2016:Apr.)
• Page Start: 635
• Page End: 661
• Publication Date: 2016-04
• Subjects: African politics -- elections -- public opinion -- voting behavior -- race -- ethnicity and politics -- experimental research; Political science -- Periodicals; 320.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0010414015621080
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0010-4140

Abstract

In democratic Africa, where ethnicity is a key driver of vote choice, politicians must attract voters across ethnic lines. This article explores one way politicians can do this: by appealing to a coethnic bond through their spouse. We propose that cross-ethnic spouses can help candidates send credible signals of coalition building before an election. We test this argument with a survey experiment in Benin, where President Yayi has married across ethnic lines. Our results confirm that priming the first lady's ethnicity increases support for President Yayi among her coethnics. We generalize these results by combining new data on leader-spouse ethnicity with Afrobarometer survey data. Our results suggest that cross-ethnic marriages are one tool leaders can use to shore up support in multiethnic elections.