Fall 2015 Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study, Jack Vowles, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

Analyzing the British Election Study from 1964 to 2010, Professor Vowles has examined the influence of electoral context on turnout, especially the closeness of elections in terms of lagged seat and constituency-level winning margins. Using cross-classified multilevel models to account for individual and contextual factors and disentangle life-cycle, cohort- and election-specific effects, he finds that closeness strongly affects voting behavior, particularly among new electors. Widening seat margins in British elections over the last decades have had a persistent impact on turnout. Study respondents who were exposed to less competitive environments when young are more likely to abstain in subsequent elections than those reaching voting age after close-fought races. One may conclude that variations in competitiveness have had both short- and long-term effects on turnout.

Event will be livestreamed at
http://www.indiana.edu/~video/stream/liveflash.html?filename=Jack_Vowles
Light refreshments will be served

Cost: Free

For more information contact:

Institute for Advanced Study
(812) 855-1513
[email protected]