Benjamin Blanckaert
Biographic Data
| ID | 4275949 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Benjamin Blanckaert |
| GIVEN NAMES | Benjamin |
| FAMILY NAME | Blanckaert |
| SIGNATURE | BLANCKAERT B |
| AFFILIATIONS | Vrije Universiteit Brussel |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-4297-9870 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 6 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 31 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 6 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Why Do Voters Vote for ‘the Other Side’? Instrumental and Expressive Motives for Cross‐Ethnolinguistic Voting in Brussels
While electoral support in deeply divided societies is expected to follow segmental lines, parties often attract substantial backing from outside their core constituencies. This article examines why voters in Belgium's Brussels‐Capital Region—a consociational system designed to enable the peaceful cohabitation of the French and Dutch language communities within its territory—support parties across ethnolinguistic lines. Based on a thematic analys…
Angry men and angry women
Why do men and women vote for the populist radical right? This question, which speaks to the phenomenon of the “radical right gender gap”, has been the topic of much scholarly interest. While previous studies refer to the role played by differences in political resources, attitudes, and socialization, this paper examines whether negative emotions towards the political system, and system-directed anger in particular, drive support for populist rad…
Crossing the Rubicon
How and why do political parties seek cross-ethnolinguistic support within a consociation?This article constitutes a thematic analysis of 30 interviews undertaken with MPs from the Brussels Capital Region (Belgium).It shows how both strategic and principled considerations underpin the logic of parties appealing to the other language group.I identify six strategies: employing customized communication, cultivating visibility, fostering cross-ethnol…
Out of Many, One? Exploring Ethnolinguistic Identity Appeals in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociationalism promises to resolve tensions among groups in deeply divided societies by constructing shared identity that transcends ethnic divisions. Yet there is no guarantee that this will happen, and empirical studies testing this claim yield inconsistent results. We examine the extent to which political parties appeal to shared identities within a consociation, focusing on the Brussels Capital Region (BCR) in Belgium. The BCR constitutes …
Institutional design and polarization. Do consensus democracies fare better in fighting polarization than majoritarian democracies
It is often claimed that we are living in an age of increasing polarization. Political views, opinions, and worldviews become increasingly irreconcilable (idea-based polarization), while at the same time society appears to be getting fractured in antagonistic, opposing camps (identity-based polarization). However, a closer look at international datasets reveals that these forms of polarization do not affect all democracies to the same extent. Lev…
Do birds of a feather flock together? Patterns of ethnolinguistic group representation in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociational democracy is commonly discussed through the assumed premise of co‐ethnic group representation whereby representatives are institutionally incentivized to represent co‐ethnic interests. However, little attention has been paid to the process of group representation in consociations, in particular the link between descriptive and substantive ethnic group representation. This article considers representative claim‐making on behalf of e…
Institutional design and polarization. Do consensus democracies fare better in fighting polarization than majoritarian democracies
It is often claimed that we are living in an age of increasing polarization. Political views, opinions, and worldviews become increasingly irreconcilable (idea-based polarization), while at the same time society appears to be getting fractured in antagonistic, opposing camps (identity-based polarization). However, a closer look at international datasets reveals that these forms of polarization do not affect all democracies to the same extent. Lev…
Crossing the Rubicon
How and why do political parties seek cross-ethnolinguistic support within a consociation?This article constitutes a thematic analysis of 30 interviews undertaken with MPs from the Brussels Capital Region (Belgium).It shows how both strategic and principled considerations underpin the logic of parties appealing to the other language group.I identify six strategies: employing customized communication, cultivating visibility, fostering cross-ethnol…
Do birds of a feather flock together? Patterns of ethnolinguistic group representation in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociational democracy is commonly discussed through the assumed premise of co‐ethnic group representation whereby representatives are institutionally incentivized to represent co‐ethnic interests. However, little attention has been paid to the process of group representation in consociations, in particular the link between descriptive and substantive ethnic group representation. This article considers representative claim‐making on behalf of e…
Out of Many, One? Exploring Ethnolinguistic Identity Appeals in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociationalism promises to resolve tensions among groups in deeply divided societies by constructing shared identity that transcends ethnic divisions. Yet there is no guarantee that this will happen, and empirical studies testing this claim yield inconsistent results. We examine the extent to which political parties appeal to shared identities within a consociation, focusing on the Brussels Capital Region (BCR) in Belgium. The BCR constitutes …
Institutional design and polarization. Do consensus democracies fare better in fighting polarization than majoritarian democracies
It is often claimed that we are living in an age of increasing polarization. Political views, opinions, and worldviews become increasingly irreconcilable (idea-based polarization), while at the same time society appears to be getting fractured in antagonistic, opposing camps (identity-based polarization). However, a closer look at international datasets reveals that these forms of polarization do not affect all democracies to the same extent. Lev…
Do birds of a feather flock together? Patterns of ethnolinguistic group representation in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociational democracy is commonly discussed through the assumed premise of co‐ethnic group representation whereby representatives are institutionally incentivized to represent co‐ethnic interests. However, little attention has been paid to the process of group representation in consociations, in particular the link between descriptive and substantive ethnic group representation. This article considers representative claim‐making on behalf of e…
Angry men and angry women
Why do men and women vote for the populist radical right? This question, which speaks to the phenomenon of the “radical right gender gap”, has been the topic of much scholarly interest. While previous studies refer to the role played by differences in political resources, attitudes, and socialization, this paper examines whether negative emotions towards the political system, and system-directed anger in particular, drive support for populist rad…
Crossing the Rubicon
How and why do political parties seek cross-ethnolinguistic support within a consociation?This article constitutes a thematic analysis of 30 interviews undertaken with MPs from the Brussels Capital Region (Belgium).It shows how both strategic and principled considerations underpin the logic of parties appealing to the other language group.I identify six strategies: employing customized communication, cultivating visibility, fostering cross-ethnol…
Out of Many, One? Exploring Ethnolinguistic Identity Appeals in the Brussels Capital Region
Consociationalism promises to resolve tensions among groups in deeply divided societies by constructing shared identity that transcends ethnic divisions. Yet there is no guarantee that this will happen, and empirical studies testing this claim yield inconsistent results. We examine the extent to which political parties appeal to shared identities within a consociation, focusing on the Brussels Capital Region (BCR) in Belgium. The BCR constitutes …
Why Do Voters Vote for ‘the Other Side’? Instrumental and Expressive Motives for Cross‐Ethnolinguistic Voting in Brussels
While electoral support in deeply divided societies is expected to follow segmental lines, parties often attract substantial backing from outside their core constituencies. This article examines why voters in Belgium's Brussels‐Capital Region—a consociational system designed to enable the peaceful cohabitation of the French and Dutch language communities within its territory—support parties across ethnolinguistic lines. Based on a thematic analys…
Political science (5 works) · Law (4 works) · Politics (4 works) · Sociology (4 works) · Law (3 works) · Capital (architecture (2 works) · Democracy (2 works) · Electoral Systems and Political Participation (2 works) · Geography (2 works) · Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare (2 works)