arbiter
JournalsAccount

Connections during Democratic Transitions: Insights from the Political Purge in Post-WWII France

Toke Aidt et al.

American Economic Journal: Economic Policy2026https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240411article
AJG 3ABDC A*
Weight
0.50

Abstract

We examine how connections shaped transitional justice during France’s post-WWII democratic transition. Parliamentarians who had supported the Vichy regime faced a two-stage purge process involving two courts. Using a difference-in-differences strategy, we find that law graduates—an influential group with ties to one of the courts—had a 10 to 14 percentage point higher acquittal rate. We analyze 17,589 documents in individual defendants’ files to explain this difference. According to this analysis, indirect connections—connections through third parties—enabled transmission of information to the judges, highlighting how connected elite groups can navigate transitions despite institutional safeguards. (JEL D72, D83, K41, N44)

Open via your library →

Cite this paper

https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240411

Or copy a formatted citation

@article{toke2026,
  title        = {{Connections during Democratic Transitions: Insights from the Political Purge in Post-WWII France}},
  author       = {Toke Aidt et al.},
  journal      = {American Economic Journal: Economic Policy},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240411},
}

Paste directly into BibTeX, Zotero, or your reference manager.

Flag this paper

Connections during Democratic Transitions: Insights from the Political Purge in Post-WWII France

Flags are reviewed by the Arbiter methodology team within 5 business days.

Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.