Does the Local Candidate Matter? Candidate Effects in the Canadian Election of 2000

Bibliographic Data

ID6237530
AuthorsAndré Blais (0000-0003-4292-110X, Université de Montréal), Elisabeth Gidengil (0000-0001-8198-5654, McGill University), Agnieszka Dobrzynska (Université de Montréal), Neil Nevitte (University of Toronto), Richard Adeau (Université de Montréal)
Year2003
Volume36
Issue3
Pages657-664
Publication date2003-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCanadian Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0008-4239 • E-ISSN: 1744-9324
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0008423903778810
OpenAlexW1988137270
LanguageEN
Citations received78
References cited9

This article ascertains the impact of local candidates on vote choice in the 2000 Canadian election. The authors show that 44 per cent of Canadian voters formed a preference for a local candidate and that this preference had an effect on vote choice independent of how people felt about the parties and the leaders. The findings suggest that the local candidate was a decisive consideration for 5 per cent of Canadian voters, 6 per cent outside Quebec and 2 per cent in Quebec. Although preference for a local candidate had a similar effect on urban and rural voters, as well as on voters of varying degrees of sophistication, the findings revealed that rural voters and more sophisticated voters were more likely to have formed a preference for their local candidate. As a consequence, the local candidate was more likely to be a decisive consideration for more sophisticated rural voters

Economics · Local election · Microeconomics · Political science · Politics · Preference · Social science · Sociology · Sophistication · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Social and Cultural Dynamics · Social Capital and Networks

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