Essays on the Material Origins of Political Change

Abstract

This dissertation explores how automation, technological change, and economic transformations shape political dynamics in post-industrial societies. It examines how shifts in material conditions influence both the demand and supply sides of politics, with evidence drawn from Western Europe and the United States. The first essay addresses methodological issues in studying the determinants of the globalization backlash, highlighting the bias introduced by post-treatment variables in regressions comparing economic and cultural drivers of voting behavior and providing additional evidence on the culture-economy nexus. The second essay investigates the impact of automation on trade unions in Western Europe, finding that regions more exposed to automation experience a decrease in union density, primarily driven by a broader labor market shift away from unionized industries. The third essay offers a structural explanation for the changing composition of political elites, examining how automation influences the likelihood of different social groups pursuing political office. Drawing on multiple sources of data on political candidates and occupational backgrounds in the US, the analysis reveals that areas with greater exposure to automation experience a decline in candidates from occupations most impacted by technological change. This trend contributes to the underrepresentation of working-class and automatable workers in politics