Does ostracism increase affective polarization? The broader effects of sidelining the Radical Right

What are the broader consequences of ostracizing the Radical Right? Recent studies show that aective polarization towards Radical Right parties is particularly pronounced. Further, ample research engages with the implications of competition in the issue dimension for electoral outcomes. The study takes a broader view, arguing that while party behaviour in the realm of issue competition mainly has consequences for electoral behaviour, nonissue strategies can have additional eects on the more fundamental level of social cohesion and parties' perceived democratic legitimacy. Thereby, it contributes to the literature on party competition by clarifying the effects of ostracism on broader outcomes relevant for societal divisions and fundamental evaluations of political actors. It does so through a survey experiment in Germany presenting respondents with one of three dierent mainstream party strategies towards the Radical Right AfD: no ostracism, the status quo ostracism, and de-legitimizing ostracism, in which the AfD is referenced as a threat to democracy. The survey allows analyzing the mainstream party strategies' eects on outcomes pertaining to voting behaviour, perceived democratic legitimacy, and aective polarization. This document presents the paper outline, as well as the pre-registration of the study addressing the empirical question.