The Effects of Partisan Elections on Political and Policy Outcomes: Evidence from North Carolina School Boards

This paper aims to provide new evidence on the political and policy consequences of partisan vs. nonpartisan local elections, in the context of school board elections in North Carolina. Specifically, we study the impacts of shifting to partisan elections in a difference-in-differences framework. First, we examine political outcomes. Our main preliminary results show that the shift to partisan elections reduces the likelihood that a Democrat is elected. This negative effect on Democrats also leads to a lower likelihood of non-white candidates being elected. Next, we consider policy outcomes, extending beyond the direct impacts of partisan elections. Our main preliminary results show that districts that switch to partisan elections experience reductions in per-pupil spending and schools located in districts that switch to partisan elections experience increased teacher turnover and an increase in less experienced teachers. Despite these results, school performance measures at the high-school level are positively impacted. a Hill: Montana State University, P.O. Box 172920, Bozeman, MT 59717. Email: andrew.hill6@montana.edu. b Jones: University of Pittsburgh, Graduate School of Public & International Affairs, 230 S. Bouquet St., Pittsburgh, PA 15260. Email: daniel.jones@pitt.edu. c Williams: Mathematica Policy Research, 1100 First St NE #1200, Washington, DC 20002. Email: breyon.contact@gmail.com. Website: www.BreyonOnline.com