Perceptions of Electoral Fairness and Voter Turnout

Previous research has established a link between turnout and the extent to which voters are faced with a “meaningful” partisan choice in elections; this study extends the logic of this argument to perceptions of the “meaningfulness” of electoral conduct. It hypothesizes that perceptions of electoral integrity are positively related to turnout. The empirical analysis to test this hypothesis is based on aggregate-level data from 31 countries, combined with survey results from Module 1 of the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems survey project, which includes new and established democracies. Multilevel modeling is employed to control for a variety of individual- and election-level variables that have been found in previous research to influence turnout. The results of the analysis show that perceptions of electoral integrity are indeed positively associated with propensity to vote. </jats:p

Towards a gendered evaluation of (highly) skilled immigration policies in Europe

Immigration policies reflect to varying degrees the calibration and stratification of desirable knowledge. The criteria adopted have varied across countries and immigration systems. However, despite the evidence that skilled women migrate more than men, little attention has been paid to the extent to which immigration policies impact differently on women and men and result in gender inequalities, and how the valuation of skills is gendered in its criteria and outcomes. The article explores how European policies for the (highly) skilled produce and reinforce inequalities in gendered circulations, not just between women and men, but also in terms of intersectional differences, such as race/nationality and age