The New Voter in Western Europe: France and Beyond (Europe in Transition: The NYU European Studies)

This book presents the main results of an electoral panel study which is both unique and innovative not only in French political research but also among Western European electoral studies. The survey was conducted among a sample of 1,846 French voters interviewed on four separate occasions (2007 Presidential and Legislative elections). Electoral trajectories can thus be observed revealing the main trends in electoral behaviour and voting patterns across the electorate. The analysis of such trajectories and patterns mobilizes not only the usual explanatory factors (demographics, political leanings and identifications) but also another set of political variables (issues, the campaign and the media, the candidates image, how electoral decisions are made, hesitation in voting intentions).This study also provides interesting findings on electoral volatility, including abstention.

This book presents the main results of an electoral panel survey, one not only unique and innovative in French electoral research but also among the most detailed panel studies in Europe. The survey was conducted among a sample of 1,846 French voters interviewed in four waves during the 2007 presidential and legislative elections in the context of Nicolas Sarkozy's victory. The analysis provides an understanding of how decisions on voting are made, the process of electoral decision-making, and the mechanisms used by voters to make choices, and attempts to identify the social, political, and psychological factors at play.

Introduction: The Dynamics of Electoral Choice--Bruno Cautrès and Anne Muxel * The Process of Electoral Decision-Making--Bruno Cautrès and Anne Muxel * Loyalties, Mobilities, and Abstentions--Anne Muxel * The Plurality of Voting Possibilities--Vincent Tiberj and Bruno Cautrès * The Decisive Influence of Image--Daniel Boy and Jean Chiche * When Do Voters Choose?--Bruno Cautrès and Anne Jadot * Following the Campaign: Politization, Confirmation, and Polarization--Thierry Vedel * Electoral Agenda and Issue Voting--Nicolas Sauger * How Le Pens Electorate Lost Faith in Him--Pascal Perrineau * The Temptation to Vote Bayrou--Sylvie Strudel * Review of an Electoral Campaign: From Chronicle to Political Logic--Claude Dargent and Martine Barthélemy * The Panel Electoral Français: Methodological Issues--Viviane Le Hay * Conclusion: The Benefits of Panel Studies--Bruno Cautrès and Anne Muxel