The Political Effects of Job Insecurity: Party Choice in Four European Countries

The end of the 2008 Great Recession has not come with a reduction of social and economic inequalities, job insecurity and precariousness. Political scientists are grappling with the political consequences of a constantly shifting social and economic structure. Using a novel dataset collected purposely to capture the multiple and varied labour market positions and conditions of voters in France, Germany, Greece and Spain right after the 2019 European Parliament elections, we examine in detail how such positions and conditions affect vote choice. The paper starts by discussing and describing a typology that allows distinguishing precarious, insecure and secure workers, as well as the intensity or degree of precariousness and insecurity faced, based on a very detailed battery of questions that can capture the multiple nuances of labour market situations and conditions. The paper then moves on to examine the effect of precariousness and insecurity on vote choice between radical left, centre-left, centre-right, radical right and other parties in the previous general elections in each country.