Who is Recruiting Our Crew? Contextual Determinants of MPs Selection
This article analyses the contextual determinants of parliamentary elites’ methods of selection. Using survey data from a representative sample of 500 Spanish MPs, we empirically demonstrate that different district characteristics generate different ways of MPs’ selection. Specifically, parties implement more exclusive ways of candidate selection in more competitive districts and in regional chambers. On the contrary, selection processes are more participative at the national
The Breakdown of the Spanish Two-party System: The Upsurge
of Podemos and Ciudadanos in the 2015 Gen
The 2015 General Election (GE) marked the end of the two-party system that had existed in Spain since the restoration of democracy. Two new parties, ‘Podemos’ and ‘Ciudadanos’ entered the national arena for the first time and together obtained 34.6 percent of the vote. This paper describes this election's context and electoral results by analysing the individual determinants behind the change to the Spanish party system. Our results indicate that economic factors predominantl
Candidate Selection in a Multilevel State: the Case of Spain
The intra-party mechanisms for MPs selection has been only partially analyzed by the literature. Most works focus on parties’ written rules regarding the selection of candidates for the national chamber(s). However, party statutes hide these mainly informal procedures. In this paper we analyze how candidate selection is implemented in parties using survey data for a representative sample of 580 MPs, completed with 58 in-depth interviews of MPs and gatekeepers. With this data
Against Bipartyism, Towards Dealignment? The 2014 EP elections in Spain
The 2014 European Parliament (EP) election in Spain took place in a context of deep economic recession and distrust of political institutions. These conditions triggered an unprecedented electoral response through which Podemos, a radical leftist party created shortly before the election, obtained eight per cent of votes and gained electoral momentum thereafter, seriously threatening the two-party-plus system. Using data from a panel survey, our analyses reveal some unexpecte
The Bright Side of the Economic Crisis: The Attribution of Political Responsibilities in Hard Times
We examine the impact of the current economic crisis on the accuracy of responsibility attribution between levels of government within States. Using individual-level data from Spain, we show that learning about responsibility attribution depends on the saliency of the issue (in our study, unemployment) and economic self-interest. The (unintended) positive consequence of economic crisis is that citizens are now more able to accurately attribute the responsibility for political
Selecting Candidates in Multilevel Democracies
The article deals with a timely yet only partially researched topic: the selection of candidates for electoral lists in multilevel democracies. From an international comparative point of view, we explain how, in different countries, MPs are selected using empirical evidence based on surveys and interviews. Countries sampled lead to a comparison of American and European multilevel democracies. The article contributes to a better knowledge of candidate selection while enlighten
Economic Crisis and Support for Democracy in Europe
The study of the impact of the economic crisis on attitudes toward democracy tends to be focused on satisfaction with specific democratic institutions. In this article we expand upon previous research to explore how the current economic crisis can affect core support for democracy as a regime. Based on European Social Survey data for the Eurozone countries, our findings are twofold. Firstly, we show that perceptions of the state of the economy have an impact both on satisfact
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