Resumen de Constituency Pressures on Committee Selection: Evidence from the Northern Ireland Assembly and Dáil Éireann

Christopher D. Raymond, Jacob Holt

• Most previous research examining selection to committees assumes constituency pressures—leading representatives to seek committee assignments dealing with their constituents’ particularistic interests that improve their re-election prospects—are incompatible with disciplined parties, which may prevent such personal vote-seeking behaviour in order to preserve the party’s brand. In contrast, we argue parties will support committee assignments promoting members’ re-election chances because parties benefit from their members’ re-election. Analysing two legislatures with highly disciplined parties and electoral systems encouraging personal vote-seeking—the Northern Ireland Assembly and Dáil Éireann—our analysis suggests constituency pressures increase the chances of selection to committees enhancing members’ re-election prospects.