Replication Data for: Mobilization and Strategies: Comparing Trade Lobbying in the U.S. and Canada

Do U.S. lobbying patterns extend to other countries? To date no study has systematically compared U.S. lobbying patterns with those of other countries using observational data. Taking advantage of similar lobbying disclosure rules in the U.S. and Canada, we create a cross-country lobbying dataset. We focus on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to control for timing, salience, and issue scope. This helps us attribute differences in firm mobilization and trade lobbying strategies across the two countries to differences in political institutions. Strikingly different USMCA lobbying patterns emerge. Within the same industry, trade associations, the executive branch, and in-house lobbyists play a larger role in Canada. Meanwhile, well established determinants of U.S. lobbying fail to explain patterns of mobilization and the use of external lobbyists in Canada. These findings provide insights into comparative lobbying studies and indicate that some stylized facts about lobbying are unique features of the U.S. political system.