Discussion paper
DP17524 Historical anti-fascism and right-wing voting in Italy
We study how anti-fascism during Mussolini’s dictatorship affects post-war support for right-wing parties in Italy. An anti-fascism measure is derived from the universe of recorded opponents, and newly-digitized historical data is used to resolve simultaneity between the supply of opposition and demand for repression, leveraging the random assignment of regime’s Special Tribunal judges. Stronger opposition in a location weak-ens support for right-wing parties decades later. Our model makes predictions about underlying mechanisms, which are tested using data on collective memorialization and parental voting behavior. The main driver is social transmission of political preferences.
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