Thesis
The effects of candidates’ pre-parliamentary career experiences on congruence between parties and voters
- Creator
- Rights statement
- Awarding institution
- University of Strathclyde
- Date of award
- 2025
- Thesis identifier
- T17318
- Person Identifier (Local)
- 201759706
- Qualification Level
- Qualification Name
- Department, School or Faculty
- Abstract
- There is the conventional belief that politicians are out of touch with voters. Historically, most politicians entered politics after gaining experience in various non-political roles. However, in recent years, a new trend has emerged where individuals start working in politics directly after leaving university, for example being employed as advisors to MPs or ministers. As a result, election candidates and MPs might be drawn from a pool of political “insiders”, leading to a declining number of candidates with skills acquired outside of politics. This career path raises several questions. Are young careerist politicians really out of touch with voters? How do distinct career types of politicians affect the level of congruence between parties and voters? Previous research has not adequately addressed the effects of career paths on the relationship between politicians and voters, as well as between politicians and their parties. To explore this in greater depth, the project comprises three research papers using comparative data from the Comparative Candidates Survey (CCS) and the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES). The first paper explores the effects of diverse career paths on ideological congruence with voters. The second paper investigates party congruence focusing on the effect of previous career experiences that lead candidates to dissent from their party's ideological position. The third paper shifts the focus on priority congruence examining how career paths may affect the congruence between candidates and voters on issue priorities. Accounting for these links, the research findings indicate that younger careerists are more congruent in comparison with other candidates. The findings have important implications for political parties, politicians, and voters who seek to understand the factors that influence political representation and accountability in democratic societies.
- Advisor / supervisor
- Rüdig, Wolfgang
- Greene, Zachary
- Resource Type
- DOI
- Funder
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PDF of thesis T17318 | 2025-06-09 | Public | Download |