Abstract Why are some parties more likely than others to keep the promises they made during previous election campaigns? This study provides first large‐scale comparative analysis of pledge fulfillment with common definitions. We over 20,000 pledges in 57 campaigns 12 countries, and our findings challenge view as promise breakers. Many that enter government executives highly fulfill their pledges, significantly so do not executives. explain variation governing parties’ by extent which share...

Abstract Saliency theory is among the most influential accounts of party competition, not least in providing theoretical framework for C omparative M anifesto P roject – one widely used data collections comparative politics. Despite its prominence, all empirical implications saliency competition have yet been systematically tested. This article addresses five predictions theory, central claim which that parties compete by selective issue emphasis rather than direct confrontation. Since a...

Abstract Welfare chauvinism has become an important element in the agenda of populist radical right. This article proposes a novel argument to explain variation strength welfare chauvinist appeals across social policy programmes. It theorizes that redistributive justice principles (equity, equality, and need) underpin programme matter. Equality‐ need‐based programmes are more likely contradict nativist worldview principle or practice, whereas equity‐based schemes less vulnerable chauvinistic...

Abstract What explains the social policy profile of populist radical right parties ( PRRP s)? Building on argument made by Mudde (2007) that socio‐economic policies are secondary elements within ideology, this paper conjectures primary ideology (nativism, authoritarianism, and populism) structure 's attitudes in domain. Based a discussion core number expectations derived as to which groups should be viewed deserving or undeserving support. These examined through an analysis put forward...

Common concepts for the classification of parties into families (origins, transnational links, ideology, name) suggest that radical right should be less homogeneous than most other party in Western Europe: their comparatively diverse origins, disputed ideological core features, as well lack stable cooperation and absence an agreed-upon label support this reasoning. The article uses expert survey data on six policy dimensions to assess homogeneity comparison with green, social democratic,...

The past decades have seen a dramatic increase in the number of regulatory agencies (RAs) across countries and policy domains. To establish credible regimes, many RAs are formally shielded from direct political influence thus enjoy high levels legal autonomy. While granting formal independence to an agency may erect some institutional barriers politicization, it also generates strong incentive appoint ideologically likeminded individuals leadership. An analysis about 700 top-level...

Election manifestos are one of the most prominent sources data for study party politics and government. Yet processes manifesto production, enactment, public reception not very well understood. This article attempts to narrow this knowledge gap by conducting a first investigation into ‘life cycle’ election from drafting stage their use in campaign post-election periods. Specifically, it investigates Austrian case between 1945 2008 (with special emphasis on 1990s 2000s), employing wealth...

While much has been written about the formation and termination of coalitions, comparatively little attention paid to policy output multiparty governments. The present study attempts narrow this research gap by analysing policy-making in three Austrian coalition governments between 1999 2008. Drawing on party mandate literature, a manually coded textual analysis election manifestos is conducted that yields dataset containing over 1,100 pledges. fulfilment these pledges taken as dependent...

This article explores the impact of political determinants on survival managers in state‐owned enterprises ( SOEs ). Drawing theories bureaucratic delegation, it is argued that preference divergence between principals and agents as well among a major driver managerial turnover. More specifically, partisan affiliation SOE ‐managers with government, opposition, or individual ministers can serve to explain length their tenure. The analysis employs C ox proportional hazard regressions test these...

We present a new method to analyze party manifestos benefit the placement of political parties per se and advance study elections. Our improves on existing manual coding approaches by (1) generating semantically complete units based syntax, (2) standardizing into subject–predicate–object structure, (3) employing fine-grained flexible hierarchical scheme. evaluate our approach comparing estimates for 2002, 2006, 2008 Austrian national elections with those yielded previous studies that employ...

Abstract Recent research finds that women's political representation correlates with higher social expenditures. This paper makes two more specific predictions regarding family benefits. First, women voters and politicians are likely to prefer in-kind benefits cash transfers. is because the provision of childcare does than money can do ameliorate double burden work duties, thus strengthening autonomy. As a consequence female should correlate spending on benefits, but not expenditures Second,...

This article examines aspects of election manifestos that are largely ignored by extant manifesto-based studies focusing on issue saliencies and policy positions. Drawing the literatures negative campaigning, retrospective voting, party mandates personalization, we develop a scheme categories allows for analysis attacks competitors, references to party’s track record, subjective objective pledges prominence leaders in manifestos. We also show these elements present major European parties....

Representative democracy presents politicians with an information problem: How to find out what voters want? While party elites used rely on their membership or mass surveys, social media enables them learn about voters’ issue priorities in real time and adapt campaign messages accordingly. Yet, we know next nothing how campaigns make use of these new possibilities. To narrow this gap, a unique data set covering every Facebook post by leaders organizations the run-up 2017 Austrian...

Radical right parties have gained access to government across Europe, yet scholarly work on how they shape welfare states remains scarce. Therefore, this article examines radical affect family benefits. Combining pro-natalist views with a commitment traditional gender roles, these seek support incomes without altering the intra-family division of labour. governance should therefore correlate positively spending allowances, but negatively childcare expenditures. However, generous allowances...

While commonly regarded as a democratic pathology, party patronage can also be understood an inherent feature of government and thus linkage mechanism between political parties the executive. Therefore, theories formation, portfolio allocation coalition governance potentially add analytical leverage to study patronage. Starting from this presumption, article derives number hypotheses field theory tests them on original data set over 2,000 appointments made managerial boards in 92 Austrian...

Political parties are central to modern democracy and the selection of their leaders is one most crucial decisions for any political party make. Yet, analysis leadership survival still in its infancy. The pioneering research has been confined few countries decades focused exclusively on performance-related explanations. While performance an obvious determinant leader survival, generations organizations suggest that intra-party factors should matter, too. We argue that, while a (winning...

Abstract Left-right partisan conflict has been a key driver of welfare state expansion and retrenchment over time across countries. Yet, we know very little about how left-right differences in party appeals vary social policy domains. Why are some issues contentious while there is broad consensus on others? This paper starts from the simple premise that function popular certain is. Based this assumption, it argues gap should be (1) larger for revenue-side than expenditure-side issues, (2)...

Abstract Legally independent central banks leave elected politicians with little direct control over monetary policy. The most important indirect channel of influence for governments thus consists in appointing ‘responsive’ bank officials and removing ‘hostile’ ones. This premise is tested by examining the effect partisan ties between governors or presidents 30 E uropean democracies 1945 2012. Drawing on an original dataset containing information party affiliations 195 governors, event...

How does gender affect the attack strategies of political actors? Do men and women diverge in their propensity to go negative choice targets? Extant research has long sought shed light on these questions (e.g., Brooks 2010; Kahn 1993; Krupnikov Bauer 2014; Proctor, Schenck-Hamlin, Haase 1994; Walter 2013). Among all possible determinants behavior elections, candidate been one most “heavily studied” (Grossmann 2012, 2). However, relevant focuses almost exclusively United States therefore a...

The extant literature has demonstrated that the logic of retaliation is a core feature negative campaigning. Attacks by one side induce counterattacks other. Yet most research on interactive nature campaigning limited to two-party competition and provides little theoretical justification for why political actors should respond attacks with counterattacks. present paper addresses these gaps. We argue negativity bias in human information processing zero-sum elections make rational strategy....

Most analyses of policy outcomes from coalition-bargaining have hitherto been conducted within a spatial framework that requires the aggregation coalition into small number point estimates. Such an approach, however, is limited in terms level specificity at which it can operate. This article therefore draws on methodology pledge fulfilment literature order to provide more in-depth examination outcomes. We are thus able take advantage fact contemporary agreements wealth detailed information...

Abstract Previous studies have found that Austria has one of the most nationalized party systems in Western Europe. Using local election data from over 2300 municipalities between 1985 and 2009, we show nationalisation system varies considerably across regions. We demonstrate variation organisational strength regional branches accounts for this finding, even when controlling municipality size time dimension. Key Words: Austrialocal listsnationalisationpartieslocal Acknowledgments are...

Negative campaigning presents parties with a collective action problem. While would prefer to have their competitors attacked, potential backlash effects from negative messages mean that individual politicians typically lack the incentives carry out such attacks. We theorize solve this problem by implementing division of labour takes into account office holders, availability for campaign activity, and media relevance. Drawing on these arguments we expect holders high public party leaders are...

A central theme emerging from recent research on party competition is that political actors sometimes remain deliberately opaque in their communication. This phenomenon has been investigated under labels such as position-blurring, ambiguity, issue clarity or ideological clarity. In this paper we propose a distinction between two concepts are conflated literature: ambiguity and vagueness. While means there substantial variance parties' positional signals, vagueness denotes statements...

There is a natural tension between theories of party government and regulatory politics. Whereas effective requires that politicians have firm control over public policy, the need for credible commitment in regulation stipulates policy-making capacities are delegated to independent agencies. While theoretical dimension this well established, there little research examines its empirical implications. To narrow gap, analysis assesses whether legal agency independence limits influence parties...