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Raising the Threshold, Fighting Fragmentation? Mechanical and Psychological Effects of the Legal Electoral Threshold in Belgium

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Reuchamps, Min [UCL] Onclin, François [ULg] Caluwaerts, Didier [VUB] Baudewyns, Pierre [UCL]

(eng) Many proportional representation systems are characterised by a legal electoral threshold. Such a threshold reserves the allocation of seats for those parties that reach a minimum share of the votes. In order to fight fragmentation, a 5 per cent threshold has been introduced for both federal and regional elections in Belgium. This article seeks to explore the mechanical and psychological effects of this legal threshold after five elections. It is shown that the threshold has had limited mechanical and psychological effects on voters but some psychological effects on party elites. Moreover, while in the short term the average number of lists dropped and several pre-electoral coalitions formed, in the longer term the legal threshold has not prevented further fragmentation.

Document type Article de périodique (Journal article) – Article de recherche
Access type Accès libre
Publication date 2014
Language Anglais
Journal information "West European Politics" - Vol. 37, no.5, p. 1087-1107 (2014)
Peer reviewed yes
Publisher Routledge (Abingdon)
issn 0140-2382
e-issn 1743-9655
Publication status Publié
Affiliation UCL - SSH/SPLE - Institut de sciences politiques Louvain-Europe
Keywords Elections ; Threshold ; Belgium
Links
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Bibliographic reference Reuchamps, Min ; Onclin, François ; Caluwaerts, Didier ; Baudewyns, Pierre. Raising the Threshold, Fighting Fragmentation? Mechanical and Psychological Effects of the Legal Electoral Threshold in Belgium. In: West European Politics, Vol. 37, no.5, p. 1087-1107 (2014)
Permanent URL http://hdl.handle.net/2078.1/146871