What the study found
The study found that perceptions of party issue competence mattered in European Parliamentary elections. For the issues of Europe and the economy, competence mattered even more when voters attributed at least part of responsibility to the European level.
Why the authors say this matters
The authors suggest that issue voting in multilevel systems depends not only on competence perceptions but also on how voters assign responsibility across levels of government. The findings indicate that people may weigh European-level responsibility when deciding how much issue competence matters.
What the researchers tested
The researchers examined whether issue competence perceptions affected electoral choice in the 2019 European Parliamentary elections in 10 countries. They analyzed data from 7,348 respondents across four issues and looked at whether effects changed depending on how clearly voters attributed responsibility to the European or national level.
What worked and what didn't
Issue competence was associated with electoral choice in the elections studied. The stronger pattern appeared for Europe and the economy when voters saw at least partial responsibility at the European level. The abstract also notes that competence may matter less when responsibility is unclear or shared, but it does not report detailed results for all four issues.
What to keep in mind
The summary does not provide detailed results for each of the four issues beyond Europe and the economy. It also does not describe limitations beyond the study's focus on the 2019 European Parliamentary elections in 10 countries.
Key points
- Issue competence mattered in European Parliamentary elections.
- For Europe and the economy, competence mattered more when voters assigned at least partial responsibility to the European level.
- The study examined 2019 election data from 10 countries.
- The analysis covered four issues and 7,348 respondents.
- The abstract suggests competence may matter less when responsibility is unclear or shared.
Disclosure
- Research title:
- Issue competence shaped electoral choice in European Parliament elections
- Authors:
- Andreas C. Goldberg, Jonas Lefevere
- Institutions:
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology, University of Antwerp
- Publication date:
- 2026-02-23
- OpenAlex record:
- View
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