The Incentives to (Not) Debate in Low Information Races

Abstract:

Why are there few debates in low-information elections where they have the greatest potential to inform vote choices?  Consistent with candidates having weak incentives to reveal their qualifications or make policy commitments, we find only a quarter of 400 Parliamentary candidates in Sierra Leone privately volunteer to debate. Introducing guaranteed public dissemination platforms allows voters to punish those who abstain and sharply increases participation.  Randomly improving the quality of the platform induces frontrunners to join.  We document high voter willingness to pay to access debates and private sector interest in disseminating them, confirming that candidate reluctance and not market viability is the main barrier.