Reservoirs of Power: The Political Legacy of Dam Construction in Franco’s Spain

This paper delves into infrastructure projects initiated during the dictatorship in Spain, particularly the construction of reservoirs and dams. These projects were instrumental inbolstering support for right-wing factions advocating for Franco’s regime over the years.However, our research reveals a notable trend: areas where dams were erected by the regimedemonstrate diminished political backing for right-wing parties in the post-dictatorshipera. We present evidence suggesting that this phenomenon is driven by the use of forced labor in dam construction by the regime, as inferred from the proximity to concentrationcamps. To address endogeneity concerns, we employ an IV approach.