Lawmaking is the principal activity of the members of the parliament. This activity stands in stark contrast to scoring political points to be reelected. This paper investigates if senatorial absenteeism affects lawmaking production, with the help of an innovative dataset consisting of 314 Italian Senator (2008-2013). Using a 2SLS approach and data from the open-data OpenPolis Foundation, this manuscript tests whether an increase in the share of non-voting constituents increases the incentives for Senators to sway undecided and operate outside the parliamentary chamber. Eventually, the empirical evidence confirms this speculation, suggesting that professional and political expertise have implication on absenteeism and policy-making productivity.
