Publication details
Volby do Evropského parlamentu ve Švédsku z hlediska teorie voleb druhého řádu
| Title in English | European Elections in Sweden in the Context of the Second-Order Elections Theory |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2011 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Politologická revue |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Political sciences |
| Keywords | Sweden; European Parliament elections; second-order elections; ‘Europe matters’ view; political parties |
| Description | The article deals with the analysis of the European Parliament elections in Sweden. The author chose the second-order elections theory, developed by Karlheinz Reif and Hermann Schmitt, as a framework of the analysis. He analyses the three most important characteristics that are attributed to the second-order elections: a) a lower turnout; b) a higher proportion of votes for non-parliamentary parties; c) a lower proportion of votes cast for government parties. The author also analyses whether EU-related issues affected a performance of political parties in the European elections, as some recent studies indicated. The analysis demonstrates validity of most the Reif and Schmitt’s original propositions, despite some discrepancies found in the third above mentioned characteristic. Factors decisive for a success of political parties should be sought in particular with regards to the current developments in the dominant political arena, while European factors play only a minor role. |