The Strategies and the Effects of Personal Vote Seeking Behaviour

Abstract

Since decades, students of political representation aim to unveil the strategies and foci of representation under democratic rule. Whom do political representatives aim to represent, how, and does it matter? One particular strategy this literature focuses on concerns personal vote seeking behavior and thus legislators’ proclivity to solicit votes on the basis of their personal record and characteristics. With this panel we wish to survey different modes and strategies of personal vote seeking behavior and thus to understand how political representatives’ behavior shapes the relative value to voters of personal and party records. Furthermore, this panel aims to shed light on the question whether personal vote seeking behavior works on Election Day, whether personal vote seeking wins personal votes. We believe that in light of electoral dealignment, changing party politics, and technological change as well, personalized types of representation are of increasing importance in most established democracies and thus should be studied in extensive ways. For this panel, we invite either comparative studies or case specific analyses based on a comparative framework addressing the questions raised.

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