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Proportional Representation and Right-Wing Populism: Evidence from Electoral System Change in Europe

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dc.contributor.authorBecher, Michael
dc.contributor.authorMenéndez González, Irene
dc.contributor.authorStegmueller, Daniel
dc.contributor.rorhttps://ror.org/02jjdwm75
dc.date.accessioned2025-01-14T17:55:47Z
dc.date.available2025-01-14T17:55:47Z
dc.date.issued2022-03-25
dc.description.abstractHow much do electoral institutions matter for the rise of populist parties? Evidence on this question is mixed, with some scholars arguing that the role of electoral rules is small. We provide new evidence for the impact of electoral system change. The UK's adoption of a proportional electoral system for European elections in 1999 provides a unique opportunity to study the link between electoral rules and the ascendancy of right-wing populist parties. Employing both synthetic control and difference-in-difference methods, we estimate that the electoral reform increased the vote share of right-wing populists by about 12 to 13.5 percentage points on average. During a time when populism was rising across Europe, the reform abruptly shifted populist votes in the UK above the European trend and above more plausible comparison cases. Our results also imply that caution is needed when empirical results based on partial reforms are extrapolated to electoral system change.
dc.description.peerreviewedyes
dc.description.statusPublished
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dc.identifier.citationBecher, M., González, I. M., & Stegmueller, D. (2023). Proportional representation and right-wing populism: Evidence from electoral system change in Europe. British Journal of Political Science, 53(1), 261-268. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123421000703
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123421000703
dc.identifier.issn1469-2112
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14417/3453
dc.issue.number1
dc.journal.titleBritish Journal of Political Science
dc.language.isoen
dc.page.final268
dc.page.initial261
dc.page.total8
dc.publisherCambridge University Press
dc.relation.departmentComparative Politics
dc.relation.entityIE University
dc.relation.schoolIE School of Politics, Economics & Global Affairs
dc.rightsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
dc.rights.accessRightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.en
dc.subject.keywordPopulism
dc.subject.keywordElectoral rules
dc.subject.keywordElectoral reform
dc.subject.keywordEuropean Union
dc.subject.keywordSynthetic control
dc.titleProportional Representation and Right-Wing Populism: Evidence from Electoral System Change in Europe
dc.typeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article
dc.version.typeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
dc.volume.number53
dspace.entity.typePublication
relation.isAuthorOfPublication64459ea7-0faa-4600-9041-a4f317ab9579
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery64459ea7-0faa-4600-9041-a4f317ab9579
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