Valence and spatial explanations for voting in the 2013 Australian election

Ian McAllister, Jill Sheppard*, Clive Bean

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    15 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This article examines the 2013 Australian federal election to test two competing models of vote choice: spatial politics and valence issues. Using data from the 2013 Australian Election Study, the analysis finds that spatial politics (measured by party identification and self-placement on the left–right spectrum) and valence issues both have significant effects on vote choice. Spatial measures are more important than valence issues in explaining vote choice, however, in contrast with recent studies from Britain, Canada and the USA. Explanations for these differences are speculative, but may relate to Australia's stable party and electoral system, including compulsory voting and the frequency of elections. The consequently high information burden faced by Australian voters may lead to a greater reliance on spatial heuristics than is found elsewhere.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)330-346
    Number of pages17
    JournalAustralian Journal of Political Science
    Volume50
    Issue number2
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 3 Apr 2015

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