Uncovering the micro-foundations of turnout and electoral systems

This paper tackles the micro-foundations of voting and addresses why proportional representation systems (PR) are associated with higher turnout than majoritarian systems (SMD). I argue that individual evaluations of the differential benefit in the calculus of voting are affected by spatial party competition framed by electoral institutions. Unlike PR, SMD constrains the number of parties and creates large centripetal forces for party competition, which reduces the perceived benefits of voting. A citizen’s voting propensity is related to the distance between her preferred policy position and those of her most- and least-favored parties. I use multilevel modeling to analyze individual voting decisions structured by aggregate variables across 64 elections. The empirical findings confirm the argument and the mechanism holds both in established and non-established democracies.

► Investigate the micro-foundations of voting and address why proportional representation systems (PR) are associated with higher turnout than majoritarian systems (SMD).
► Individual evaluations in the calculus of voting are affected by spatial party competition framed by electoral institutions.
► Unlike PR, SMD constrains the number of parties and creates large centripetal forces for party competition, which reduces the perceived benefits of voting.
► I use multilevel modeling to analyze individual voting decisions structured by aggregate variables across 64 elections.
► The empirical findings confirm the argument and the mechanism holds both in established and non-established democracies.