The underlying factors of (recent) regional voting patterns
Explaining spatial patterns of voting behaviour is a very recent and rapidly growing field of research in regional science. Since the rise of more right-wing and/or protest voting, it has become apparent that these votes are not randomly spread over space. An interesting example is the spatial distribution of votes in favour of the Brexit. Most people who voted to leave the EU were located in the middle-east regions of England while the people who preferred to remain in the EU mostly lived in and around London. These voting patterns coincide with geographical patterns of education level; income level and dependence on the manufacturing sector (Becker et al., 2017). Recently, Andres Rodríguez-Pose connected this voting behaviour to a feeling of discontent that is increasing in certain regions and he labelled recent ballot outcomes across the EU as ‘The revenge of the places that don’t matter (2018).
In this special issue, the focus is on underlying factors of regional voting patterns. The territory contains many variables that can help us understand voters' voices about the single currency, migration, budgets, environment, education, health, taxes, life and peace. Can we link voting patterns to discontent, and if so, what is causing this feeling of discontent? Do voting patterns on various topics differ between regions and countries, between urban- and rural regions, and between regions that grow or are in decline? What about space-time patterns? We in particular welcome submissions that focus on causality.
Planning
- Full paper submission February 1st 2020
- Reviews February 2020
- Final paper submission May 2020
Editors: Prof. Eveline van Leeuwen (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) & Dr. Solmaria Halleck-Vega (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), Urban Economics group, Wageningen University
References
Becker, S. O., Fetzer, T., & Novy, D. (2017). Who voted for Brexit? A comprehensive district-level analysis. Economic Policy, 32(92), 601-650.
Rodríguez-Pose, A. (2018). The revenge of the places that don’t matter (and what to do about it). Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, 11(1), 189-209.