SPECIAL VERSUS GENERAL-ELECTIONS AND COMPOSITION OF THE VOTERS - EVIDENCE FROM LOUISIANA SCHOOL TAX ELECTIONS

Using Louisiana school board property tar elections from the past deca de, the authors study the question of whether or not special elections tend to produce lower turnout and a greater percentage of yes votes t han do general elections. With the problem focusing on the choice of v oting yes, voting no, or abstaining from voting modified minimum chi-s quare methods are used in the analysis. The authors find that oppositi on to local school tares increases with turnout They also find that tu rnout is affected by the size of the tar, by the presence or absence o f other taxes on the ballot and by the presence or absence of state or federal matters on the same ballot. Both the inclusion of state or fe deral issues (or candidates) on the ballot and a higher tar rate lead to increased relative opposition at the polls.