Ambassadors promote domestic exports to a host country and represent the interests of their home country at large. However, are trade benefits equally distributed domestically?

In the United States, a substantial number of ambassadors are former governors or legislators—that is, politician ambassadors. The authors argue that these politician ambassadors are particularly equipped with knowledge and incentives to promote exports from their home states to host countries.

Leveraging the biographic information of 164 ambassadors and U.S. state–level exports to thirty major export destinations from 2002 to 2020, the authors find that the home states of politician ambassadors, compared to other states, on average enjoy a ten percentage point increase in exports to host countries. The home-state effect is particularly apparent in countries in which the United States exports the most in dollar value, and in industries that export final goods, such as beverages and electrical equipment.

The past career paths and future career aspirations of ambassadors can shape how the benefits of diplomacy are distributed domestically.