Representation amidst candidates : the balance of electoral lists : a longitudinal analysis of the Belgian political parties

This dissertation focusses on the balances and the representativeness of electoral candidate lists in Belgium between 1995 and 2019. While extensive research has been done in recent years concerning candidate selection, wanting to answer the question of who composes the candidate lists and how, this dissertation shifts the focus to the final offer of the political parties by extensively analysing out of who the candidate lists are composed. In this perspective the dissertation provides a comprehensive map of the electoral candidate lists on five major socio-demographic characteristics: besides the usual suspects of gender and ethnicity, residence (or localness), occupation, and age are tackled as well. The dissertation therefore unravels electoral lists and investigates their differences (over space) and evolution (over time). In a second time, we analyse the extent to which political parties take into account descriptive representation, by comparing the balances with those found in the population. Finally, the dissertation investigates the effect of the balances on the electoral performance of the lists.(POLS - Sciences politiques et sociales) -- UCL, 202

« Prétendre représenter : la représentation politique comme revendication », Revue française de science politique, vol. 66, n° 1, février 2016.

Dans le contexte d’une société en changement perpétuel, il est plus que nécessaire de repenser la notion de représentation politique. Avec la multiplication des acteurs de pouvoir tant publics que privés, l’heure est venue pour une reconceptualisation de la représentation politique en remettant en question l’hégémonie de Hanna Fenichel Pitkin, C’est à cet exercice, à la fois théorique et empirique, que ce prête ce dossier de la Revue française de science politique (RFSP), en mettant principal..

Electoral Lists: Personalization as Party Strategy

Political parties are often considered as being at the centre of the electoral process. However, with the weakening of social structures one can ask if it is still the case. Undeniably, more and more voters disassociate themselves from a political party in a context of dealignment and electoral volatility, reducing the role of party representation and enhancing the personalization of the representative process. Nevertheless, while candidates play a crucial role in the political linkage, it is still the party who selects them and decides who is eligible for a seat in Belgium. Therefore, it would be wrong to neglect the role of the political party in the personalisation process. In fact, the argument that the candidate is just a tool, used to optimize the winning chances of the party is just as plausible. One way to contribute to the ongoing debate and shed some light on the phenomenon of personalization is by considering the final offer of the political party, namely the electoral lists it presents in various constituencies. From this perspective the objective of this article is a twofold. The first is to investigate how parties balance the electoral lists with regard to the socio-demographic characteristics of candidates (i.e. age, residence, gender, profession) as well as their political characteristics (i.e. incumbency, campaign experience, previous preference votes). Following this, the determinants of the final list compositions will be analysed. Are there structural factors (e.g. district magnitude, party magnitude,…) influencing the list composition regardless of the differences in the candidate selection process and what type of candidates do they favour? This article answers the call for more research on PR electoral systems, by using longitudinal Belgian data ranging from 1995 until 2014 – offering the possibility to identify the impact of variation in the electoral system due to subsequent electoral reforms

Do candidates matter? The profile of candidates elected out of order in Belgium from 1995 until 2014.

Political parties have been at the centre of the electoral process for a long time. However, with the weakening of social structures (Van der Eijk & Franklin, 2009; Dalton, 2013), one can ask if it is still the case. Undeniably, more and more voters disassociate themselves from a political party (e.g. due to the erosion of traditional cleavages), in a context of dealignement and electoral volatility (Baudewyns, 2010, Dassonneville, 2012), reducing the role of party representation and enhancing the personalization of the representative process. Nevertheless, while candidates play a crucial role in the political linkage, it is still the party who selects them and decides who is eligible for a seat, and to what degree by determining the list position of each candidate. This dimension is often neglected by scholars, while it is a crucial element in our democracy (Hazan, 2010: 3). One way to contribute to the ongoing debate and shed some light on the phenomena of personalization is by asking the question of the extent to which candidates matter individually once the list composition is final. Can they change the will of the party through preference votes, or does the party continue to rule the elections with an iron fist? Indeed, Fiers calculated that only 30 out of 4719 MPs (from 1919–1995) got elected out of list order (2009). This study aims to analyse the period from 1995 until 2014 at the federal level in Belgium, based on the official list results (as released by the Belgian ministry of Interior), in order to see if (A) there is an increase in the candidates elected out of order, and if so (B) what we can tell about their profile. We call the hypothesis that (H1) there is an increase in the candidates elected out of order, following the trend of personalization, despite the power of the political parties. This can be an indicator of the failure of the political party to adapt to the changing environment. This increase could be explained by (H2) the personalized profile of the candidates, countering the wish of the political party

Who Wins More? Understanding Preferential Voting by Means of Context and Candidates’ Background and Campaigning

This chapter analyses the triggers of preferential voting in Belgium. Combining both contextual and candidate level information, the authors first test how features of the electoral and political competition (i.e. position on the list, district and party magnitude) influence preferential votes. Then, they focus on the role of individual characteristics of candidates, taking into account not only their socio-demographic background, but also their attitudinal and behavioural attributes. In particular, candidates’ ties with their own local constituencies, previous political experience, as well as the resources and tools they employed during the campaign are widely explored in the chapter

Les gouvernants face aux transformations de la démocratie

Les décideurs publics contemporains gouvernent des démocraties sous tensions. Qu’il s’agisse d’une crise, d’une fatigue ou d’une mutation, le lien qui unit gouvernants et gouvernés est aujourd’hui largement considéré comme sujet à transformation. Cet enjeu questionne la légitimité des décideurs publics ainsi que leur place dans l’architecture des démocraties contemporaines. En ces temps de remise en question du modèle représentatif, cet article examine dans un premier temps comment les décideurs publics perçoivent leur propre position. Ensuite, l’article aborde la manière dont les décideurs publics conçoivent la représentation politique. Finalement, l’analyse porte sur la place qu’accordent les décideurs à une participation plus directe des citoyens dans l’action publique

Ecologists and Democracy in Belgium: An Analysis of Party Manifestos

An increasing gap characterizes the relationship between citizens and policy-makers in Europe. Citizens do not only lose confidence in their representatives but, more broadly so, in democracy and democratic functioning. Consequently, new political parties perform increasingly better during elections. New decision-making processes - rooted in participatory or deliberative democracy - are also gradually considered as means to revitalize and irrigate the representative system. This paper aims at developing a better understanding of the democratic preferences of the Belgian Green political parties. Traditionally, Flemish and French-speaking green parties have been the owners of democratic innovation issues in Belgium. Through the analysis of Belgian green parties’ manifestos since 1995 regarding three types of democracy - representative, deliberative, and participatory democracy - this paper investigates and uncovers the evolution of the democratic preferences within these parties. The paper helps to shed light on how the greens perceive democracy in their programs