Nicolás Idrobo

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Updated on October 2025

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Welcome to my website!

I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Program for Quantitative and Analytical Political Science (QAPS) in the Department of Politics at Princeton University. I will be on the academic job market in Fall 2025.

My dissertation shows how economic sanctions on authoritarian regimes can backfire: rather than weakening incumbents, sanctions trigger economic decline that disproportionately incentivizes opponents to emigrate, ultimately strengthening the regime’s hold on power.

Beyond this, I study political economy and methodology, with a regional focus on Latin America. My work has appeared in the Journal of Politics and Cambridge Elements, among other outlets, and will soon appear in World Development.

Contact information:
idrobo@princeton.edu
+1 (734) 353-7093
Department of Politics
Princeton University
001 Fisher Hall
Princeton, NJ 08544-1012
CV Email Google Scholar

Main publications

  1. On Unfounded Claims of Electoral Fraud, with Dorothy Kronick and Francisco Rodríguez.
    Accepted at World Development
    Latest draft

  2. Cattaneo, Matias D., Nicolás Idrobo, and Rocío Titiunik. 2024. A Practical Introduction to Regression Discontinuity Designs: Extensions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    Final draft | Replication | Publication

  3. Idrobo, Nicolás, Dorothy Kronick, and Francisco Rodríguez. 2022. “Do Shifts in Late-Counted Votes Signal Fraud? Evidence from Bolivia.” The Journal of Politics 84(4): 2202-2215.
    Final draft | Replication | Publication | Media coverage: NYT (English, Spanish), Crisis Group
    OAS Response | Nooruddin’s Response | Our Response to Nooruddin

  4. Cattaneo, Matias D., Nicolás Idrobo, and Rocío Titiunik. 2020. A Practical Introduction to Regression Discontinuity Designs: Foundations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    Final draft | Replication | Publication | Erratum

  5. Idrobo, Nicolás, Daniel Mejía, and Ana María Tribín. 2014. ``Illegal Gold Mining and Violence in Colombia.” Peace Economics, Peace Science and Public Policy 20(1): 83-111.
    Publication

Working papers

  1. [Job market paper] Why Economic Sanctions Backfire: the Role of Emigration and the Venezuelan Case. October, 2025.
    Latest draft

  2. The Effect of Oversight on the Quantity and Quality of Policing, with Dorothy Kronick and Tara Slough. September, 2024.
    Latest draft

Work in progress

  1. The Failed War on Pre-Trial Detention: Evidence from a Quasi-Experimental Reform, with Dorothy Kronick and Ángela Zorro Medina. February, 2025.

  2. The Advent of the Inference Era: Science Production in Economics and Political Science since 1970, with Arthur Lupia, Hwayong Shin and Rocío Titiunik. February, 2025.

  3. The Hidden Power of Money: How Campaign Contributions to Legislators Buy Legislative Influence, with Pablo Querubin, Miguel Rueda and Nelson Ruiz. February, 2025.

  4. Covariate Distributions and Feasible Questions in Comparative Politics and Political Economy, with Rocío Titiunik. October, 2023.