ABSTRACT
Any political power is indeed specifically relying on certain categories of citizens who get its privileges. All the political game is to obtain the support of different categories of voters by taking into account their specific interests. Protectionism is an ideal instrument for politicians. The use of protectionism is a costly transfer method, but it is more accepted than others by citizens, because it is more difficult to assess its cost. The gain obtained by the producers of a protected good is obtained at the expense of those who must pay for it at a higher price because of protection. Calculations about effective protection rates are always approximate: To evaluate them correctly, one should have a perfect knowledge of all the characteristics of the productive systems. The more diffuse are the concerned interests the less chances there are that the producers be organised into protectionist pressure groups.
