Opening the black box of political will: Local public authorities and anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine

Pervasive corruption presents a challenge to scholars, practitioners and activists. The importance of political will for the success of anti-corruption reforms is widely recognized, but our understanding of why political will arises (or not) is lacking. This research aims to dissect the concept of political will with regards to anti-corruption policies among local public authorities (LPAs). This project addresses the question: Why, in a context where corruption is widespread, do some local public authorities engage in meaningful anti-corruption efforts while others do not? Ukraine presents an advantageous setting, with considerable subnational variation and widespread ongoing anti-corruption efforts. We will interview local public authorities in eight strategically selected regions, which all based on previously collected data show some evidence of political intent to combat corruption. The project will investigate how environmental conditions (institutions, relevant actors) and individual level attributes of LPAs (personal background, perceptions, capacity) influence whether this minimal anti-corruption intent builds into the collective momentum defined as political will.