Party Polarization – Similarities and Differences Between Voters and Candidates

Abstract

Political polarization has recently attracted the attention of political science scholars because it can undermine the functioning of representative institutions and it could lead to policy stalemate, and political distrust. According to a large part of the related literature that is based on US politics, political polarization is a product of the political elites. On the other hand, other publications (including those based on the theory of social cleavages), express the idea that a polarized party configuration occurs when political elites express into the political arena deep, preexisting social divisions. Since there is no consensus on how to define and measure political polarization, this panel invites papers that address the different aspects of this multifaceted concept and propose ways to measure political polarization both in two-party and multiparty political systems. For instance, what are the best indicators of polarization? The panel is looking for papers that will deepen our understanding of the interactions between voters and candidates. Papers that address the following questions are very welcome: Are voters more or less polarized than political elites? Do elites build on existing cleavages or can they invent new ones? Under what conditions is polarization increased? What is the role of contextual factors?