The Making of a Super-Issue: Scotland Independence and Citizens’ Vote Choice Over Time (1999-2021) Jean-François Daoust-Université de Sherbrooke and Thomas Gareau-Paquette-McGill British and Scottish politics are undergoing a period of tumultuous change, leading to what some scholars have labelled “electoral shocks,” which have altered the relative importance of the main issues explaining citizens’ political behaviour. […] Read more

            Call for Applications Summer School on “Democratic Decline and Resilience”  26-30 August 2024, Université de Montréal Organized by the CERIUM-FMSH Chair on Global Governance We are inviting applications from doctoral students for a doctoral summer school on the topic “Democratic Decline and Resilience”. The summer school will take the […] Read more

Comparative Public Opinion Polarization in Europe Tadeas Cely-Dartmouth In my presentation, I will show you the most exciting findings from my dissertation research on public opinion polarization in Europe. First, I will argue the differences rooted in religious cultures and the historical church-state conflict best explain why culture wars emerged in some European countries, whereas […] Read more

Is The Party Greater than the Sum of its Parts? An Analysis of Class Representation and Party Policy in Canada and in the UK Thomas Rafie-Université de Montréal Extensive research has demonstrated that descriptive representation matters. Members of groups often share common interests and elected officials that are part of these groups can wield their […] Read more

The Heterogeneity of Social Pressure to Vote in Canada Maxime Coulombe-Western University, Laura French Bourgeois-Western, Allison Harell-UQAM, and Laura Stephenson-Western This study investigates the prevalence, influence, and heterogeneity of social pressure to vote in Canada, addressing a gap in the existing literature primarily focused on the United States. Utilizing data from diverse surveys, including the […] Read more

Regional Divides and Electoral Dynamics in Western Democracies Valentin Pautonnier-Université de Montréal The literature is increasingly focusing on the regional disparities within Western democracies, which appear to be growing and exerting more influence on individual voting patterns. The notable rise of populist parties in Europe at the local level often serves as a prime example […] Read more

Who Accepts Party Policy Change? The Individual-Level Determinants of Policy Change Acceptance Ruth Dassonneville-Université de Montréal, Maurits Meijers-Radboud University Experimental research has shown that political parties often, but not always, suffer reputational costs when they change their policy positions. Yet, it is not clear who accepts and who rejects party policy change. Using newly collected […] Read more

The boundaries of electoral consent: Pre-analysis plan André Blais-Université de Montréal, Damien Bol-Sciences Po Paris, Carolina Plescia-University of Vienna This study aims to explore which electoral outcome, i.e. distribution of parliamentary and cabinet seats between parties, citizens are most willing to accept and least likely to contest. To achieve this goal, we will conduct a […] Read more

Les priorités des citoyens quant aux politiques de santé : un agenda de recherche Olivier Jacques– Université de Montréal, Sharon Baute (Konstanz) Marius Busemeyer (Konstanz), and David Weisstanner (Lucerne) This project focuses on public demand for healthcare spending in a context where increasing healthcare costs could lead to reduced government funding for other programs or an […] Read more

Bridging the Gap: Bilingualism and the End of the Two Solitidues Philippe Chassé – Université de Montréal and Sciences Po Paris, Matthew Taylor – Université de Montréal First coined by novelist Hugh MacLennan, the expression “two solitudes” is frequently used to describe the cultural divide between Canada’s two main linguistic groups: Anglophones and Francophones. Research […] Read more