Watching the State: Can New Technologies Promote (a Sense Of) Democracy?

Abstract: Why do autocrats implement new technologies aimed at increasing transparency - to improve accountability or to create a veneer of democracy? This paper studies the effects of the technology of video monitoring of elections in one prominent authoritarian regime, Russia. I exploit a discontinuity in the assignment of webcams to polling stations in the 2018 Presidential election to estimate causal effects. I find that video monitoring reduces voter turnout by 5% and results in 8.5% fewer votes cast for the incumbent, consistent with an improvement in electoral accountability. However, I also find evidence of geographical displacement of votes from monitored to unmonitored polling stations that compensate for around half of the direct effect. Using a survey experiment before the 2019 local elections, I further show that increasing awareness about video monitoring improves voters' perceptions of electoral integrity and increases their willingness to vote. Consistent with existing theories, autocrats might be willing to invest in sophisticated technologies to increase trust in public institutions and prevent revolt.