POS 3931r Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Euclidean Distance, Free Rider Problem, Theory Z
29 Dec 2017
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Document Summary
Parties develop ideologies as weapons in the struggle for o ce . Ideologies allow rational voters to reduce costs and focus on party di erences (in the form of ideological di erences) Among the strengths of downs theory combines voter and candidate/party behavior i. e. accounts for interactions between rational voters and rational parties/elites. Downs = people vote on a proximity/spatial basis based on who is closest to you on the scale of ideologies. Largely ignores role of groups (and group identities) Unlike marketplace decisions, there are no direct tangible bene ts forthcoming as result of individual choice (i. e. , the vote) (voting in elections represents a collective action situation w/ free- rider problem) Spatial/proximity voting (downs: voter aware of issue and had a position, voter aware of candidates" positions, candidates" positions di er (for the voter, voter votes for closest / most proximal party or candidate. Typically, fewer than 1/2 of the electorate have these steps in place on most issues.
