Role of zealots in a network model of cooperative political associations

Jacek M. Kowalski and Andrzej Pȩkalski

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2020, vol. 549, issue C

Abstract: A discrete-time deterministic model is proposed of expected electoral choices in a large community of influencing each other participants. Each perspective voter opinion is affected by a restricted, small number of other decision-makers. General analysis and related computer simulations are done for a democratic multi-party system. Main observations reduce to the indication of the critical role of the so-called hard core electorate as well as to stressed importance of the time scales of the opinion formation periods. In particular, a mechanism is demonstrated when an initially small minority of extremists may, in a longer run, radicalize others and get majority of the votes.

Keywords: Voting; Sociophysics; Opinion formation; Monte Carlo simulations; Zealots (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:549:y:2020:i:c:s0378437119321727

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2019.123915

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