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Seeking friends and influencers: business and labor groups lobbying in the Chilean congress

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2024

Eduardo Alemán Open the ORCID record for Eduardo Alemán [Opens in a new window]  and
Andrés Dockendorff
Eduardo Alemán*
Affiliation:
University of Houston, Houston, USA
Andrés Dockendorff
Affiliation:
Universidad de Chile, Santiago de Chile, Chile
*
Corresponding author: Eduardo Alemán; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

This study analyzes direct lobbying in the Chilean Congress, contributing to the debate over which legislators are targeted by interest groups. Utilizing a comprehensive dataset constructed from legally mandated records of lobbying meetings, we test theoretical implications predominantly derived from the US context within a different presidential democracy. The focus is on the legislative targets of business and labor groups. The results reveal a marked preference for lobbying allies, aligning with recent theories of information transmission and legislative subsidies. This pattern holds true for both business and labor groups and highlights the significance of ideological alignment for legislative lobbying in Chile. Additionally, the study finds that legislators with influential positions, such as those on key committees or centrally located in the bill collaboration network, are more frequently targeted. This research provides key insights into the dynamics of legislative lobbying in a non-US context, underscoring the generalizability of established theoretical frameworks.

Keywords

LobbyingBusinessUnionsLegislaturesChile
Type
Research Article
Information
Business and Politics , Volume 26 , Issue 4 , December 2024 , pp. 665 - 683
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Vinod K. Aggarwal

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