Re-examining Leader Effects

Have Leader Effects Grown in Australian Federal Elections 1990–2004

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6234874
AutoresPhilip Senior (The University of Sydney), Peter Van Onselen (Edith Cowan University)
Año2008
Volumen43
Número2
Páginas225-242
Fecha de publicación2008-06-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAustralian Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1036-1146 • E-ISSN: 1363-030X
EditorialInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/10361140802035754
OpenAlexW2068929815
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas3
Referencias citadas10

It is well established that the popularity of party leaders exerts an important influence on vote choice in modern federal elections. Significant partisan and class de-alignment have been key drivers of this trend. Although Australia's development in this respect has been slower than in some other liberal democracies, it has nonetheless been significant, and has weakened voters' attachments to the major parties. This article examines six federal elections (1990–2004) and investigates whether the electoral impact of party leader popularity is continuing to grow, or whether the impact, although important, has been relatively stable or declining. We also investigate the impact of different methods of calculating leader effects on their implied size and, drawing on new data available in the most recent Australian Election Study surveys, present an alternative model of leadership effects that has not been assessable previously in the Australian context

Context (archaeology · Economics · Federal election · Geography · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Popularity · Commonwealth, Australian Politics and Federalism · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Gender Politics and Representation · Law · Public Administration