Abstract This paper investigates the divergent responses of US state legislators to Chinese investment in American agricultural land. Although these investments represent a minor fraction of all foreign-held agricultural acres, they have triggered significant legislative efforts. Often, these efforts are justified by national security concerns, but there are also economic gains to be had. Do legislators whose districts stand to benefit economically from Chinese investments put security concerns aside, or does fear of China trump material gains? This study finds that in districts with greater exposure to Chinese agricultural land holdings, local economic benefits outweigh other concerns. Using a unique dataset that links Chinese agricultural land ownership to state legislators’ roll-call votes, I find a negative correlation between the scale of Chinese-owned land and support for restrictive measures. Exploring mechanisms through quantitative analysis and qualitative examination, I show how local economic benefits influence voter perceptions, which in turn affect legislative decisions.
Ze Han (Thu,) studied this question.