1. Does Party Politicization of Corruption Affect Voter Turnout
- Author:
- Andreas Bagenholm, Stephan Dahlberg, and Maria Solevid
- Publication Date:
- 11-2016
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Quality of Government Institute, University of Gothenburg,
- Abstract:
- In this paper, we argue that the effects of corruption on voter turnout not necessarily have to be negative. We argue that voters’ willingness to participate in elections will increase when parties politicize the issue of corruption in electoral campaigns, as it indicates party responsiveness to voter concerns. We test this claim by using individual-level data from CSES coupled with unique context data on party politicization of corruption in campaigns. Our findings show that higher perceived levels of corruption are associated with lower voter turnout but that the negative effect of perceiving high corruption on turnout is reduced in an electoral context where corruption is politicized. The results thus show that if corruption is not politicized, individuals’ corruption perceptions exert a significant negative impact on turnout. By politicizing anti-corruption measures, political parties are acting policy responsive and by that they are also affecting voters’ decision whether to vote or not.
- Topic:
- Politics, Political Theory, and Political stability
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand