Title of article :
A Vote Against Europe? Explaining Defection at the 1999 and 2004 European Parliament Elections
Author/Authors :
HOBOLT، SARA B. نويسنده ,
Issue Information :
روزنامه با شماره پیاپی سال 2009
Abstract :
Governing parties generally win fewer votes at European Parliament elections than at national
elections. The most common explanation for this is that European elections are ‘second order national
elections’ acting as mid-term referendums on government performance. This article proposes an
alternative, though complementary, explanation: voters defect because governing parties are generally
far more pro-European than the typical voter. Additionally, the more the campaign context primes
Eurosceptic sentiments, the more likely voters are to turn against governing parties. A multi-level
model is used to test these propositions and analyse the effects of individual and contextual factors at
the 1999 and 2004 European Parliament elections. Both European and domestic concerns matter to
voters; moreover, campaign context plays an important role in shaping vote choices.
Journal title :
British Journal of Political Science
Journal title :
British Journal of Political Science