%0 Report
        %A Bauernschuster, Stefan
%A Blum, Matthias
%A Hornung, Erik
%A Koenig, Christoph
        %T The Political Effects of the 1918 Influenza Pandemic in Weimar Germany
        %D 2023
        %8 2023 Jul
        %I Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        %C Bonn
        %7 IZA Discussion Paper
        %N 16291
        %U https://www.iza.org/publications/dp16291
        %X How do health crises affect election results? We combine a panel of election results from 1893–1933 with spatial heterogeneity in excess mortality due to the 1918 Influenza to assess the pandemic's effect on voting behavior across German constituencies. Applying a dynamic differences-in-differences approach, we find that areas with higher influenza mortality saw a lasting shift towards left-wing parties. We argue that pandemic intensity increased the salience of public health policy, prompting voters to reward parties signaling competence in health issues. Alternative explanations such as pandemic-induced economic hardship, punishment of incumbents for inadequate policy responses, or polarization of the electorate towards more extremist parties are not supported by our findings.

        %K issue ownership
%K issue salience
%K voting behavior
%K health
%K elections
%K pandemics
%K Weimar Republic