"Hall of Fame" Voting: The Econometric Society

We examine the determinants of election as Fellow of the Econometric Society, an example of voting within a group to confer honor on some members and perhaps achieve additional status for the entire group. Using data from annual elections from 1990-2000, we find that objective measures of quality help determine elections, as do attestations of quality by previous honorees. What one might view as ascriptive characteristics, such as candidates' subspecialty or institutional affiliation/location, also affect their electoral success.