How electoral reform alters legislative speech: Evidence from the parliament of Victoria, Australia 1992–2017

Ishima, Hideo

doi:10.1016/j.electstud.2020.102192

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…However, pre-post event studies cannot account for unobserved time-varying confounder and therefore cannot rule out that the effect attributed to the electoral reform is driven by a time trend unrelated to the institutional change (Ishima 2020). To address this shortcoming, I argue that studying mixed systems that undergo electoral reform yields more credible causal evidence of the effects of electoral rules.…”

Section: Electoral Incentives and Mps' Behaviormentioning

confidence: 99%

Electoral Incentives and Geographical Representation: Evidence from an Italian Electoral Reform

Viganò

2023

Legislative Studies Qtrly

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Candidate‐centered electoral systems create incentives for MPs to cultivate a personal vote among their constituents, which in turn should strengthen geographical representation. However, existing research has missed the theoretical distinction between the selection and incentives effects of electoral systems. Electoral rules influence who successfully runs for office (selection) and MPs' behavior once they have been elected (incentives). Focusing on the 2005 Italian electoral reform from a mixed to a proportional system, this article assesses the effects of the electoral system change on reelected MPs' attention to local issues in parliamentary questions and bills. The dual source of variation in electoral incentives (mixed system and reform) provides a unique opportunity to disentangle the impact of incentives and selection on MPs' behavior. Contrary to expectations, the results indicate that MPs formerly elected in single‐member districts (SMDs) did not significantly decrease their attention to local issues after the reform. This suggests that electoral incentives alone are not enough to modify significantly the behavior of MPs experiencing the institutional change and that selection effects should be taken more into account when considering the impact of electoral systems. By differentiating two mechanisms through which electoral rules influence legislators' behavior, this finding contributes new knowledge to the ongoing debate about the consequences of electoral institutions and reforms.

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Section: Electoral Incentives and Mps' Behaviormentioning

confidence: 99%

Electoral Incentives and Geographical Representation: Evidence from an Italian Electoral Reform

Viganò

2023

Legislative Studies Qtrly

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“…However, speech data disaggregated by topic offer advantages. First, it allows us to analyze more closely the congruence between constituency characteristics and representation (Ishima 2020; Quinn et al 2010). Second, it allows us to examine whether these representational linkages vary according to the forum in which speeches take place and the topic at hand.…”

Section: Speech Participationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Constituency-focused speechmaking is vital to legislators elected in candidate-centered electoral systems. They can use speeches to address policy matters important to constituents, show concern for the well-being of the district’s businesses and labor organizations, and praise relevant individuals or groups in their districts (Dockendorf 2018; Ishima 2020). Modeling speech topics can help assess the consequences of the electoral connection and the congruence between constituency traits and representation (Quinn et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Congressional Committees, Electoral Connections, and Legislative Speech

Alemán

Micozzi

Vera

2022

Political Research Quarterly

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This article examines the effects of committee specialization and district characteristics on speech participation by topic and congressional forum. It argues that committee specialization should increase speech participation during legislative debates, while district characteristics should affect the likelihood of speech participation in non-lawmaking forums. To examine these expectations, we analyze over 100,000 speeches delivered in the Chilean Chamber of Deputies between 1990 and 2018. To carry out our topic classification task, we utilize the recently developed state-of-the-art multilingual Transformer model XLM-RoBERTa. Consistent with informational theories, we find that committee specialization is a significant predictor of speech participation in legislative debates. In addition, consistent with theories purporting that legislative speech serves as a vehicle for the electoral connection, we find that district characteristics have a significant effect on speech participation in non-lawmaking forums.

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Electoral reform and fragmented polarization: New evidence from Taiwan legislative roll calls

Liao

2024

Legislative Studies Qtrly

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This paper investigates how legislators respond to an electoral reform by adjusting their positions with respect to co‐partisans and rivals. Using cross‐sectional legislative roll calls over 20 years, we study how the dynamics of blue‐green confrontation are influenced by Taiwan's electoral reform from Single Non‐Transferable Votes (the SNTV) to Single‐Member Districts (SMD). Contrary to existing literature, our empirical evidence shows that the reform significantly fragmented legislator positions within their party and in relation to members from opposing parties, leading to an increase in contentious legislation and higher levels of both inter‐ and intra‐party distance. In the years following the reform, the political confrontation between the Kuomintang and the Democratic Progressive Party gradually diminished, eventually returning to levels seen before the reform. Moreover, our analysis reveals that the 2008 reform had heterogeneous effects on different parties, with each party displaying varying levels of resilience in response. This finding contributes to electoral system literature, providing policy implications for democratic countries contemplating electoral reforms.

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How electoral reform alters legislative speech: Evidence from the parliament of Victoria, Australia 1992–2017

Cited by 4 publications

References 18 publications

Electoral Incentives and Geographical Representation: Evidence from an Italian Electoral Reform

Electoral Incentives and Geographical Representation: Evidence from an Italian Electoral Reform

Congressional Committees, Electoral Connections, and Legislative Speech

Electoral reform and fragmented polarization: New evidence from Taiwan legislative roll calls

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