Vying for support: Lobbying a legislator with uncertain preferences
Abstract
We construct a model in which two opposing lobbyists bid for the support of a legislator with an uncertain bias toward either lobbyist. Notably, high bias uncertainty yields lobbyists offering low bids. In contrast, low bias uncertainty makes lobbyists bid aggressively. Finally, for moderate bias uncertainty, we find a nonmonotonic relationship between the legislator’s bias uncertainty and the lobbyists’ bids.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Political Influence and Corporate Strategies
Auction Theory and Applications
Game Theory and Voting Systems
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Economic Modelling
- Volume
- 156
- Pages
- 107489–107489
- Publication date
- 17 January 2026
- Language
- EN