Optimally Dictatorial Committees

D. Carlos Akkar

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arXiv · 2507.21699

Optimally Dictatorial Committees

D. Carlos Akkar

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Abstract

I study the optimal voting mechanism for a committee that must decide whether to enact or block a policy of unknown benefit. Information can come both from committee members who can acquire it at cost, and a strategic lobbyist who wishes the policy to be enacted. I show that the dictatorship of the most-demanding member is a dominant voting mechanism: any other voting mechanism is (i) less likely to enact a good policy, (ii) more likely to enact a bad policy, and (iii) burdens each member with a greater cost of acquiring information.

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D. Carlos Akkar. 2025-07-29. Optimally Dictatorial Committees. https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.21699

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