CRIMETurns Out Neither. New Research Finds Mayors on Both Sides Mixed in Implementing Effective Policies.
Many Republican political candidates and leaders accused their Democratic counterparts of being soft on crime during the run-up to the 2024 elections. Concerns over the safety of the nation’s cities has been a longstanding —and potent —political issue. But how much influence do elected officials actually have over crime rates?
Many Republican political candidates and leaders accused their Democratic counterparts of being soft on crime during the run-up to the 2024 elections. Concerns over the safety of the nation’s cities has been a longstanding — and potent — political issue.
But how much influence do elected officials actually have over crime rates? Are localities with Democratic mayors less safe than those run by Republicans? Are they less generous with funding for police or more prescriptive on enforcement or diversity in hiring? New research examined data from 400 U.S. cities over nearly three decades and found the political affiliation of mayors made little difference when it comes to crime rates and policing.
The Gazette spoke with one of the researchers, Justin de Benedictis-Kessner, associate professor of public policy at Harvard Kennedy School, about what they learned. Interview has been edited for clarity and length.
What compelled your team to look into whether there was any data to back up partisan claims of whether one side was better on crime?
I don’t think those are just made-up claims coming from one side of the partisan aisle. One of the really interesting things about crime, specifically in cities, is that people on both sides of the partisan aisle have made claims that Democratic cities are not well-run, especially on crime and public safety. That includes everyone from President Trump, making claims that Democrats have driven cities into the ground and made them more dangerous, to post-2024 election, people on the Democratic side of the aisle saying that Democratic city leaders are not approaching crime well, and they’re not satisfying voters.
So, we wanted to get at the claim: Relative to Republican city leaders, are Democratic politicians making cities more dangerous for people in any way? Are they changing the way police are funded or staffed over the last three decades? And if they are funding the police at lower levels, is that leading to higher levels of crime?
