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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Brian Boyle
This is the authors' accepted manuscript of an article that has been accepted and is due to be published in its final definitive form by Sage Publications Ltd., 2022.
For re-use rights please refer to the publisher's terms and conditions.
The issue of unequal electoral turnout poses serious concerns for both the overall health of democratic politics, and the extent to which certain groups exert an unequal influence on the political process. This paper explores whether electoral rules such as: Compulsory voting, electoral system proportionality, and voter registration have the potential to reduce voter inequality in terms of age, income, and education. This is tested using cross-national survey data and cross-level interactions between electoral institutions and socio-demographic variables. The final dataset is based on waves 2-4 of the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES), and contains information on 133,000 individuals, within 45 countries, between 2001-2016. The results indicate that compulsory voting is one of the most effective means of reducing the turnout gap, while the effects of proportionality and voter registration are somewhat more mixed.
Author(s): Boyle B
Publication type: Article
Publication status: In Press
Journal: Political Studies
Year: 2022
Acceptance date: 05/04/2022
Date deposited: 11/04/2022
ISSN (print): 0032-3217
ISSN (electronic): 1467-9248
Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd.
