Electoral Concerns Reduce Restrictive Measures During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Pulejo, Massimo; Querubín, Pablo

doi:10.3386/w27498

Cited by 20 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Pulejo and Querubín 18 claim that especially before elections, political interests mingle with professional interests. Elections can directly affect the decision-making process and the measures leaders choose to take during an epidemic crisis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>When Politics Meets Pandemic: How Prime Minister Netanyahu and a Small Team Communicated Health and Risk Information to the Israeli Public During the Early Stages of COVID-19</p>

Gesser‐Edelsburg¹,

Hijazi²

2020

RMHP

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Background The coronavirus brought the world’s leaders to the center of the media stage, where they not only managed the COVID-19 pandemic but also communicated it to the public. The means they used to communicate the global pandemic reveal their strategies and the narratives they chose to create in their nation’s social consciousness. In Israel, the crisis broke out after three election cycles, such that the government in charge of the crisis was an interim government under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was operating under three criminal indictments. This study sought to examine the ways in which Prime Minister Netanyahu and two senior Israel Ministry of Health officials—Director General Moshe Bar Siman Tov and Prof. Sigal Sadetsky, Head of Public Health Services—communicated information about the health crisis in Israel during what has been termed the first wave and the beginning of the second wave. Methods and Sample The research adopted qualitative methods (discourse, content and thematic analysis) to analyze the communication strategies and compare them to health and risk communication. Triangulated data collection from different data sources was used to increase the credibility and validity of the results. The research sample comprised the following sources from March 3 through June 21, 2020: transcripts of 19 press conferences and 12 press interviews, 95 emergency regulations signed by Prime Minister Netanyahu, and 52 articles in major Israeli newspapers. Results Netanyahu and the Health Ministry Director General used an apocalyptic narrative to communicate COVID-19 to the public. The main strategies used in constructing this narrative were intimidation, lack of information transparency, giving the public conflicting instructions contrary to the health and risk communicating approach, and using a health crisis to promote political intentions and actions. Conclusion Communicating health crises to the public, particularly ongoing crises like COVID-19, requires that leaders implement the health and risk communication approach and create a cooperative narrative that does not rely on a strategy of intimidation, but rather on empathy and on fact-based and transparent information.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>When Politics Meets Pandemic: How Prime Minister Netanyahu and a Small Team Communicated Health and Risk Information to the Israeli Public During the Early Stages of COVID-19</p>

Gesser‐Edelsburg¹,

Hijazi²

2020

RMHP

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“…Table 2 presents the main sociodemographic statistics by state [26,27].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Not far enough: Public health policies to combat COVID-19 in Mexico’s states

et al. 2021

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Background Mexican state governments’ actions are essential to control the COVID-19 pandemic within the country. However, the type, rigor and pace of implementation of public policies have varied considerably between states. Little is known about the subnational (state) variation policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico. Material and methods We collected daily information on public policies designed to inform the public, as well as to promote distancing, and mask use. The policies analyzed were: School Closure, Workplace Closure, Cancellation of Public Events, Restrictions on Gatherings, Stay at Home Order, Public Transit Suspensions, Information Campaigns, Internal Travel Controls, International Travel Controls, Use of Face Masks We use these data to create a composite index to evaluate the adoption of these policies in the 32 states. We then assess the timeliness and rigor of the policies across the country, from the date of the first case, February 27, 2020. Results The national average in the index during the 143 days of the pandemic was 41.1 out of a possible 100 points on our index. Nuevo León achieved the highest performance (50.4); San Luis Potosí the lowest (34.1). The differential between the highest versus the lowest performance was 47.4%. Conclusions The study identifies variability and heterogeneity in how and when Mexican states implemented policies to contain COVID-19. We demonstrate the absence of a uniform national response and widely varying stringency of state responses. We also show how these responses are not based on testing and do not reflect the local burden of disease. National health system stewardship and a coordinated, timely, rigorous response to the pandemic did not occur in Mexico but is desirable to contain COVID-19.

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“…While this may be the case, there are other elements related to political motives that might prove relevant to the inclusion of enforcement language. Reelection is an important political element that shapes the types of policies politicians pursue (Pulejo and Querubín 2020). Being up for reelection is one element that is important to how governors make decisions, but the public's party affiliation and commitment to that party affiliation is also relevant in considering a bid for reelection and public support for specific policy actions.…”

Section: Political Self-interestmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing Motivations for Including Enforcement in US COVID-19 State Executive Orders

Curley

Harrison

Federman

2021

Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research and Practice

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The United States' response to COVID-19 has been predominantly led by state governments. To understand if, why, and how state governments include enforcement language in their executive order response, this article conducts an analysis based on 1,357 coded executive orders. It is found that decisions to include enforcement language are influenced by a governor's political circumstances and perceived risks associated with the crisis. This paper offers insight into how these findings are important for future research and an explanation of the distinct ways that US state governments are choosing to address

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Electoral Concerns Reduce Restrictive Measures During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 20 publications

References 6 publications

<p>When Politics Meets Pandemic: How Prime Minister Netanyahu and a Small Team Communicated Health and Risk Information to the Israeli Public During the Early Stages of COVID-19</p>

<p>When Politics Meets Pandemic: How Prime Minister Netanyahu and a Small Team Communicated Health and Risk Information to the Israeli Public During the Early Stages of COVID-19</p>

Not far enough: Public health policies to combat COVID-19 in Mexico’s states

Comparing Motivations for Including Enforcement in US COVID-19 State Executive Orders

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