Costs of Democracy

Description

One of the most troubling critiques of contemporary democracy is the inability of representative governments to regulate the deluge of money in politics. If it is impossible to conceive of democracies without elections, it is equally impractical to imagine elections without money. Costs of Democracy is an exhaustive, ground-breaking study of money in Indian politics that opens readers’ eyes to the opaque and enigmatic ways in which money flows through the political veins of the world’s largest democracy.
Through original, in-depth investigation—drawing from extensive fieldwork on political campaigns, pioneering surveys, and innovative data analysis—the contributors in this volume uncover the institutional and regulatory contexts governing the torrent of money in politics; the sources of political finance; the reasons for such large spending; and how money flows, influences, and interacts with different tiers of government. The book raises uncomfortable questions about whether the flood of money risks washing away electoral democracy itself.

About the Editors
Devesh Kapur is director of Asia Programs and the Starr Foundation Professor of South Asia Studies at the Paul Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) of the Johns Hopkins University, Washington D.C., USA.
Milan Vaishnav is senior fellow and director, South Asia Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington D.C., USA.

Reviews

‘This volume fills an important gap in both the literature on Indian political economy, as well as in the broader study of electoral finance. The book should be read both by scholars and policymakers interested in the role money plays in the world’s largest democracy.’

—Atul Kohli, David K.E. Bruce Professor of International Affairs, Princeton University, USA

‘One of the vital challenges in India and around the world is curbing the corrosive role of money in politics. This study, by a distinguished team of contributors, provides new insights into campaign finance in India, the world’s most populous democracy, and how regulations could be reformed. The research will be of widespread interest for scholars of elections, corruption, and political reform.’

—Pippa Norris, Paul F. McGuire Lecturer in Comparative Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA, Laureate Professor of Government and International Relations at the University of Sydney, Australia, and founding Director of the Electoral Integrity Project

‘Democracy doesn’t come cheap. Its cost is tremendous and rising. Unfortunately, the role of money in politics has lately assumed pernicious dimensions. It is no consolation that India is not alone facing this problem. This timely book is not only the first of its kind for India but also a rare contribution to the broader comparative literature.’

—S.Y. Quraishi, former Chief Election Commissioner of India

Table of contents

List of Figures and Tables
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations

Introduction
Devesh Kapur and Milan Vaishnav

1. Political Finance in a Developing Democracy
The Case of India
Eswaran Sridharan and Milan Vaishnav

2. Money in Elections
The Role of Personal Wealth in Election Outcomes
Neelanjan Sircar

3. Builders, Politicians, and Election Finance
Devesh Kapur and Milan Vaishnav

4. Navigating Fiscal Constraints
Dalit Parties and Electoral Politics in Tamil Nadu
Michael A. Collins

5. Money and Votes
Following Flows through Mumbai and Bihar
Lisa Björkman and Jeffrey Witsoe

6. What Costs So Much in Indian Elections?
Intuitions from Recent Electoral Campaigns in Mumbai
Simon Chauchard

7. Whose Money, Whose Influence? Multilevel Politics and Campaign Finance in India
Jennifer Bussell

Conclusion
Implications for Research and Policy
Devesh Kapur, Eswaran Sridharan, and Milan Vaishnav

Index
Editors and Contributors