The Effect of Electoral Systems on Voter Turnout: Evidence from a Natural Experiment*

Carlos Sanz

Political Science Research and Methods, 2017, vol. 5, issue 4, 689-710

Abstract: I exploit the unique institutional framework of Spanish local elections, where municipalities follow different electoral systems depending on their population size, as mandated by a national law. Using a regression discontinuity design, I compare turnout under closed list proportional representation and under an open list, plurality-at-large system where voters can vote for individual candidates from the same or different party-lists. I find that the open list system increases turnout by between 1 and 2 percentage points. The results suggest that open list systems, which introduce competition both across and within parties, are conducive to more voter turnout.

Date: 2017
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Working Paper: The effect of electoral systems on voter turnout: evidence from a natural experiment (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cup:pscirm:v:5:y:2017:i:04:p:689-710_00

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