European integration and political party logos: A ‘visual Europeanization’?

Matteo CM Casiraghi, Eugenio Cusumano and Angelos Chryssogelos
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Matteo CM Casiraghi: Department of International Relations and International Organizations, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
Eugenio Cusumano: Department of Political and Juridical Sciences, University of Messina, Italy
Angelos Chryssogelos: School of Social Sciences and Professions, 4904London Metropolitan University, UK

European Union Politics, 2024, vol. 25, issue 1, 86-105

Abstract: European integration scholars have paid little attention to the visual dimension of Europeanization. We fill this gap by analysing how European Union integration reshapes political parties’ most visible symbols: their logos. We examine 579 party logos in Central, Eastern and Southern Europe before and after countries became European Union members, obtained the status of candidates or joined the European neighbourhood policy. Our difference-in-differences models show that European Union integration corresponds to a decrease in extremist and nationalist symbols as well as national flag colours. This ‘visual Europeanization’ process, prompted by population ecology and rebranding, cannot be solely explained by democratization or economic growth. Our analysis considers potential mechanisms that explain this correlation, including Europarty membership and normative diffusion, and discusses implications for the Europeanization literature.

Keywords: European integration; Europeanization; logos; political parties; visual politics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:eeupol:v:25:y:2024:i:1:p:86-105

DOI: 10.1177/14651165231207088

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