Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-fwgfc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-11T07:28:26.233Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

9 - When the Music Stops: The German Politics of the Greek Bailout

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2018

Christina J. Schneider
Affiliation:
University of California, San Diego
Get access

Summary

The chapter utilizes an in-depth case study, which draws from in-person interviews with administrative and political elites in the German government, archival work, and secondary sources, to illustrate the likely electoral effect when hidden strategic delay fails. I trace the history of negotiations leading up to the first bailout in Greece in 2010 to analyze the electoral effects of EU negotiations in Germany. The case study is particularly interesting, because it is a case of “failed” delay. Due to a large segment of the population opposing a financial rescue package for Greece and an important regional election, the German government had attempted to delay a bailout to Greece until after the election, publicly stating that it opposed such a bailout. Because of an unexpected and very rapid deterioration of the economic situation in Greece and the Eurozone, the German government agreed to a bailout just a week before the election. The case provides us with a rare chance to analyze the counterfactual in a situation where the delay did not work. In this situation, my theory would predict the German government would lose public approval as a consequence. Supporting this, I demonstrate in the case study that voters were opposed to the bailout and punished the German government for its decision to pursue it.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Responsive Union
National Elections and European Governance
, pp. 267 - 297
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2018

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×