When politicians have lower discount factors than voters, democratic elections cannot sufficiently motivate politicians … to undertake long-term socially beneficial projects. When politicians can offer incentive contracts which become … politicians time preferences. In the non-commitment case, incentive contracts may need to include a golden parachute clause …

The thesis studies the potential of incentive contracts for politicians using game-theoretic methods. Supplementing the … election mechanism with these contracts is a new idea to make politicians more accountable. Two types of incentive contracts … enhance the accountability of politicians and to increase social welfare. …

voters' capacity to identify and empower well-suited politicians. In our model, candidates are heterogeneous in two …