This thesis comprises of three chapters, which are based on independent essays. Each chapter has a focus on another player in the political process. The first two chapters examine public representatives and how they potentially find room to reap some personal benefits from their work. The third chapter focuses on the behavior of citizens and how they make use of their political power in the form of direct democracy. More precisely, the first chapter analyzes national governments and their efforts to stay in office. The second chapter investigates bureaucrats at the European Investment Bank (EIB) – the bank of the European Union – who theoretically should not have a political agenda such as reelection concerns. I test whether they approve more loans from their home regions irrespective of project quality criteria. Finally, the third chapter asks whether the direct democratic activity in one municipality has spillover effects to the neighboring municipalities.
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