Thanks for your interest in the paper!! We actually find the opposite: certain class of public goods ("unfunded public goods"), e.g., protecting public health, induce support for right populism

Thanks, Catherine! Big congrats too on this paper! Super cool– excited to read. Paula Rettl was also just here visiting Philadelphia this weekend :)

The challenge for the Left is to turn unfunded public goods into funded ones: redistribute their concentrated costs using
–Job retention schemes
–Training and reskilling
–Redistributive compensation

Without credible compensation, right populists will continue to exploit the gap.

We also show negative future expectations predict Trump support:
Counties w/ more pessimistic future economic outlooks voted more heavily for Trump in 2016.

This long-term pessimism, rather than immediate economic loss, fuels right-wing populism.

Same pattern observed using an alternative measure: the share of jobs that can’t be done remotely (“teleworkability”).

We leverage staggered timing of COVID business closures in the U.S.—a rare economic shock decoupled from race. Using an event study design, we find lockdowns boosted Trump support in states with more low-education workers, but had no effect in high-education ones.

These policies don’t require direct taxes. That’s precisely the problem:
They’re “cheap” for governments, yet disproportionately costly for certain workers—esp. those with lower educ or less flexible skills. Without compensation, these voters are vulnerable to populist appeals.

Unfunded public goods, policies that benefit the public but impose concentrated economic costs on specific groups, without compensating them, drives right-wing populism.

Think:
– COVID lockdowns
– Trade liberalization
– Climate policies
– Innovation and competition policy

2/6 🧵In @cpsjournal.bsky.social, @alicexu.bsky.social & Iversen ask if economic, rather than cultural factors, drive support for right-wing populists. Staggered DiD in the US & covid lockdowns. In states with less educated people (cannot work from home) lockdowns increase Trump support doi.org/pft7

Yesss! 🥳🥂🤘 Thrilled for you –congratulations, Chagai!!

Hell yeeeee! 🥳🥂🤘