The workshop will address the question of how the selection process of politicians affects their policy-making behavior: in democratic systems, voters are constantly trying to learn the qualities of their leaders in order to make the best possible electoral choice. This learning process deeply affects the behavior of politicians in ways that can be beneficial but at times also damaging to the quality of government actions. In this respect, an issue of particular interest is the interaction of politicians' and voters' behavior with features of the institutional environment such as the electoral system and the media landscape.