Conceptualizing the Role of Local Candidates in Building Political Trust

• In Event: Electoral Democracy in Canada

Abstract

This theoretical paper delves into web of factors that mediate political trust during federal electoral campaigns in Canada, with a specific emphasis on the role of candidates in the local constituency. While research on the representative role of Canadian MPs in the riding has paid attention to their efforts to garner trust and develop a personal bond with constituents (Koop et al., 2018), we widen the lens to consider the role and impact of candidates. We argue that local candidates are a neglected but important part of understanding political trust. These are significant actors who make concerted efforts to shape constituents’ impressions of their personal integrity and empathy, to generate enough confidence (or trust) that people will come out to cast a ballot for them. Further, candidates are important to consider because, depending on whether they stand for the party in or out of government, they may make entirely different appeals as to whether citizens should have trust and confidence in the political system.

Our paper develops a comprehensive framework theorizing the various factors that affect the evolution of political trust in the context of the local campaign. These factors include the demographic characteristics of candidates such as their age, gender, racial and other identity features that have been shown to impact perceptions of candidate trustworthiness (for example female candidates are generally perceived as more trustworthy than men). Candidate-voter affinities, in terms of both identity characteristics and party loyalties, are also expected to be a key factor in the formation of trust. Perceptions of candidates’ personal integrity, relatability and accessibility play a pivotal role in shaping voters’ trust. The nuances of local candidates’ campaign messaging, and the authenticity with which they engage with their constituents are also important in assessing trust dynamics. Candidates who craft coherent and consistent messages are hypothesized to foster higher levels of trust among voters. Distinctive geographies of trust may also shape the way candidates and voters relate to each other. For example, voters’ expectations of candidates, and the way that local campaign dynamics can enhance or erode political trust, may differ between rural and urban constituencies, and between small towns and large cities.

An important and original contribution of our paper is to theorize and explore how local candidates signal trustworthiness in a context of overall low (and declining) trust in government. The proposed framework offers a roadmap for empirical investigations, facilitating a deeper comprehension of the factors that underpin the development and maintenance of political trust within the local constituency.

Authors

• Karen Bird, McMaster University

• Joanna Everitt, University of New Brunswick, St. John

• Angelia Wagner, University of Alberta

• Mireille Lalancette, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières