Most research on biased public sector hiring highlights local politicians' incentives to
distribute government positions to partisan supporters. Other studies instead point to the role …

Studies on patronage and politicization typically focus on the dilemma politicians face when
recruiting public personnel. Politicians must choose between appointing loyal allies to …

What explains ethnic minorities' attachment to the state? Our current understanding has
primarily considered structural factors, particularly access to political power and …

After months of grandstanding amidst an economic crisis that has seen prices of basic goods
skyrocketed, growing unsustainable public debt levels and the value of the local currency …

How can weak states build fiscal capacity? I argue that governments in weak states can
build fiscal capacity by collaborating with non-state, traditional political institutions (TPIs) …

The global experience of political polarization, and politicians' attacks on democratic
institutions, render individuals' identification with the governing coalition, or with its …

How do bureaucrats implement public policy when faced with political intermediation? This
article examines this issue in the distribution of land rights to informal settlements in the …

Despite macro-level patterns that link populists in power with democratic backsliding, it is
unclear how populist attitudes correlate with attitudes about democracy among individuals …

Do politicians select public sector employees via patronage to win votes while sacrificing
performance? I combine newly digitized personnel records on the selection, careers, and …

The three essays in this dissertation explore how weak states can build fiscal capacity,
which is essential for economic development and political stability. In Chapter 2, I argue that …