The Irish Voter: The Nature of Electoral Competition in the Republic of Ireland - Softcover

Michael Marsh; Richard Sinnott; John D. Garry; Fiachra Kennedy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 071907732X ISBN 13: 9780719077326

Publisher: Manchester University Press, 2008

Synopsis

This pioneering analysis uses the results from the first ever Irish election study to provide a comprehensive survey of the motives, outlook and behaviour of voters in the Republic of Ireland. Building on the foundations laid down by previous work on comparative electoral behaviour, it explores long-term influences on vote choice, such as party loyalties and enduring values, as well as short-term ones, such as the economy, the party leaders and the candidates themselves. It also examines how people use their vote and why so many people do not vote at all.

Many features of Irish elections make such a detailed study particularly important. The single transferable vote system allows voters an unusual degree of freedom to pick the candidates they prefer, while electoral trends observed elsewhere can be found in a more extreme form in Ireland. For example, attachment to parties is very low, differences between them are often obscure, candidate profiles are very high and turnout is falling rapidly. However, Irish elections defy international trends in other respects, most notably in the degree of personal contact parties and candidates make with their voters. 

Findings are presented in a manner that is highly accessible to anyone with an interest in elections, electoral systems and electoral behaviour. The book is essential reading for anyone interested in Irish politics and is an important text for students of European Politics, Parties and Elections, Comparative Politics and Political Sociology.

About this title

Synopsis:

This work contains reports on the first ever Irish election study and is the first comprehensive, academic survey of the motives, outlook and behaviour of the Irish voter. It explores a number of well-known puzzles about Irish electoral behaviour and uses the unique data set to provide answers to them and offers a crucial insight into the impact of the economy on electoral behaviour. The survey evidence is presented in a highly accessible way and findings are assessed in both an Irish and comparative context.

About the Author:

Michael Marsh is Associate Professor of Political Science at Trinity College Dublin. Richard Sinnott is Professor of Politics at University College Dublin. John Garry is Lecturer in Politics at Queen's University Belfast. Fiachra Kennedy is Research Fellow in the Geary Institute, University College Dublin -- .

About this edition

• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 071907732X
• ISBN 13: 9780719077326
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272