Initiatives Damp Candidate Extremism

A short empirical claim: states that use citizen initiatives for policy decisions appear to depress voter support for ideologically extreme state legislative candidates compared with states without initiatives. If robust, this suggests a common institutional rule (initiative availability) moderates representation by changing incentives for voters or candidates. — If true, this links a specific procedural feature (ballot initiatives) to ideological outcomes in elections, which matters for debates over electoral reform and democratic resilience.