Lasting Effects of Electoral Systems on Candidate-Centric Voting

• In Event: Electoral Institutions, Candidate Strategy, and Legislative Behavior

Abstract

Extensive studies show that electoral systems shape voter behavior. However, by only looking at the contemporaneous effects of electoral rules, these studies overlook the possibility that electoral systems also have long-term, habit-forming impacts on how voters cast their votes. In this study, I evaluate the latter effects applying age-period-cohort and regression discontinuity designs to survey data in Japan and Taiwan. I find that how many times voters have experienced elections under a highly candidate-centric single non-transferable vote system (SNTV) positively influences the extent of candidate-centric (as opposed to party-centric) voting. Further, this effect persists even 10 years after SNTV ceased to exist in the two countries. By highlighting the lasting effects of electoral systems, this study provides fresh insights into the matured literature on electoral institutions.

Author

• Taishi Muraoka, Academia Sinica