Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-mwx4w Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-24T19:40:38.944Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Process matters: the variegated effects of municipal amalgamation features on voter turnout revealed in a 10-country comparative investigation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2023

Silvia Bolgherini Open the ORCID record for Silvia Bolgherini [Opens in a new window]  and
Aldo Paparo Open the ORCID record for Aldo Paparo [Opens in a new window]
Silvia Bolgherini*
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
Aldo Paparo
Affiliation:
Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
*
*E-mail: silvia.bolgherini@unipg.it
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Most literature finds a detrimental effect of amalgamation on voter turnout in municipal elections. Some other studies reveal instead null or even positive effects. We argue that this inconsistency derives from the fact that previous research has only analysed the amalgamation/turnout relation in single case studies. The contribution of this article is therefore twofold. First, it proposes a unified framework to investigate the amalgamation/turnout relation in comparative perspective, which clarifies the shortcut between size and amalgamation, disentangles the multifaced nature of municipal amalgamation, and outlines clear testable hypotheses related to its implementation – both at the national and at the local level. Secondly, it provides an original 10-European-country dataset of municipal amalgamations in the last decades (comprising Albania, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Norway) to empirically verify such hypotheses concerning the effects of the amalgamation features on voter turnout. Our study crucially reveals the relevance of the characteristics of the amalgamation process. When the amalgamation is imposed by the national government, turnout is particularly low, similarly to when the amalgamation occurs independently from a wide reform scheme. On the other hand, municipal turnout after amalgamation is higher when a larger number of municipalities are merged and when the amalgamated municipalities had a similar population before being merged. Moreover, our empirical evidence confirms the importance of traditional second-order predictors of turnout in municipal elections, even with specific reference to the post-amalgamation elections. Conversely, in such elections, the overall size of the (final) municipality is not a significant predictor of voter turnout.

Keywords

municipal amalgamationturnoutcomparative politicspolicy processlocal government
Type
Research Article
Information
European Political Science Review , Volume 15 , Issue 3 , August 2023 , pp. 313 - 331
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Consortium for Political Research

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.)

References

Allers, Maarten and Geertsema, Bieuwe (2016) ‘The effects of local government amalgamation on public spending, taxation, and service levels’, Journal of Regional Science 56(4): 659–682.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Allers, Maarten, de Natris, Joes, Rienks, Harm and de Greef, Tom (2021) ‘Transitional and structural effects of municipal amalgamation on voter turnout in local and national elections’, Electoral Studies 70(April): 102284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Askim, Jostein, Klausen, Jan-Erling, Vabo, Signy and Bjurstrøm, Karl (2016) ‘What causes municipal amalgamation reform?’, in Kuhlmann, Sabine and Bouckaert, Geert (eds.), Local Public Sector Reforms in Times of Crisis, London: Palgrave UK, pp. 59–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Askim, Jostein, Klausen, Jan-Erling, Vabo, Signy and Bjurstrøm, Karl (2017) ‘Territorial upscaling of local governments’, Local Government Studies 43(4): 555–576.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baldersheim, Harald and Rose, Lawrence (2010) Territorial Choice: The Politics of Boundaries and Borders, Basingstoke: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bel, Germà and Warner, Mildred (2016) ‘Factors explaining inter-municipal cooperation in service delivery’, Journal of Economic Policy Reform 19(2): 91–115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhatti, Yosef and Hansen, Kasper M. (2019) ‘Voter turnout and municipal amalgamations—evidence from Denmark’, Local Government Studies 45(5): 697–723.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blesse, Sebastian and Baskaran, Thushyanthan (2016) ‘Do municipal mergers reduce costs?’, Regional Science and Urban Economics 59: 54–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blesse, Sebastian and Roesel, Felix (2019) ‘Merging county administrations – cross-national evidence of fiscal and political effects’, Local Government Studies 45(5): 611–631.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blom-Hansen, Jens, Houlberg, Kurt and Serritzlew, Søren (2021) ‘Jurisdiction size and local government effectiveness’, European Journal of Political Research 60(1): 153–174.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blom-Hansen, Jens, Houlberg, Kurt, Serritzlew, Søren and Treisman, Daniel (2016) ‘Jurisdiction size and local government policy expenditure’, American Political Science Review 110(4): 812–831.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolgherini, Silvia, Grimaldi, Selena and Paparo, Aldo (2021) ‘Assessing multi-level congruence in voting in comparative perspective’, Local Government Studies 47(1): 54–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolgherini, Silvia and Mollisi, Vincenzo (2021) The Effects of Municipal Amalgamation on Turnout. Paper IPSA Congress, Lisbon.Google Scholar
Cameron, Robert and Milne, Chantal (2013) ‘Size, efficiency and local democracy in South Africa’, African Journal of Public Affairs 6(4): 1–20.Google Scholar
Cancela, João and Geys, Benny (2016) ‘Explaining voter turnout: a meta-analysis of national and subnational elections’, Electoral Studies 42: 264–275.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dahl, Robert and Tufte, Edward (1973) Size and Democracy, Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Denters, Bas, Goldsmith, Michael, Ladner, Andreas, Mouritzen, Paul E., Rose, Lawrence. E. (2014) Size and Local Democracy, Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dollery, Brian, Byrnes, Joel and Crase, Lin (2008) ‘A conceptual analysis population size and scale economies in municipal service provision’, Australasian Journal of Regional Studies 14(2): 167–175.Google Scholar
Drew, Joseph, Kortt, Michael and Dollery, Brian (2016) ‘An empirical assessment of scale economies and the Queensland forced amalgamation program’, Local Government Studies 42(1): 1–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eythórsson, Grétar (2009) ‘Municipal amalgamations in Iceland’, in Baldacchino, G., Greenwood, R. and Felt, L. (eds.), Remote Control, St. John’s, NL: ISER Books, pp. 170–183.Google Scholar
Eythórsson, Grétar and Jóhannesson, Hjalti. 2002. ‘Amalgamation of municipalities. Impact and consequences. A study on seven new municipalities’. Akureyri. RHA.Google Scholar
Fritz, Benedikt and Feld, Lars (2015) ‘The political economy of municipal amalgamation’, CESifo Working Paper, no. 5676: 1–38.Google Scholar
Gaardsted, Annie (2002) ‘Size and electoral participation in local elections’, Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 20(6): 853–869.Google Scholar
Gendźwiłł, Adam, Kurni, Anna ewicz, and Swianiewicz, Paweł (2020) ‘The impact of municipal territorial reforms on the economic performance of local governments’, Space and Polity 25(1): 37–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harjunen, Oskari, Saarimaa, Tuukka and Tukiainen, Janne (2021) ‘Political representation and effects of municipal mergers’, Political Science Research and Methods 9(1): 72–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heinisch, Reinhard, Lehner, Thomas, Mühlböck, Armin and Schimpf, Christian (2018) ‘How do municipal amalgamations affect turnout in local elections?’, Local Government Studies 44(4): 465–491.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heinisch, Reinhard and Mühlböck, Armin (2016) ‘Auf die Größe kommt es an!’, Zeitschrift für Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft 10(2): 165–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hicks, Bruce M. (2006) ‘Voter turnout and representation in post-merger Toronto’, IRPP Working Paper Series.Google Scholar
Hirschman, Albert O. (1970) Exit, Voice, and Loyalty, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Horiuchi, Yusaku, Saito, Jun and Yamada, Kyohei (2015) ‘Electoral consequences of local government reform in Japan’, Journal of East Asian Studies 15(1): 99–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jakobsen, Morten and Kjaer, Ulrik (2016) ‘Political representation and geographical bias in amalgamated local governments’, Local Government Studies 42(2): 208–227.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jenny, Marcelo and Ennser-Jedenastik, Laurenz (2014) ‘Examining the electoral consequences of forced municipal mergers’, Paper presented at Tag der Politikwissenschaft 2014, 1–21.Google Scholar
Kjær, Ulrik (2002) ‘Municipal amalgamations: where should the city hall be located?’, Nordisk Administrativt Tidsskrift 83(1): 56–73.Google Scholar
Koch, Philippe and Rochat, Philippe (2017) ‘The effects of local government consolidation on turnout’, Swiss Political Science Review 23(3): 215–230.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kraaykamp, Gerbert, van Dam, Marcel and Toonen, Theo (2001) ‘The effects of municipal amalgamation on local electoral turnout in The Netherlands’, Acta Politica 36(4): 402–418.Google Scholar
Ladner, Andreas (2002) ‘Size and direct democracy at the local level’, Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 20(6): 813–828.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lapointe, Simon, Saarimaa, Tuukka and Tukiainen, Janne (2018) ‘Effects of municipal mergers on voter turnout’, Local Government Studies 44(4): 512–530.10.1080/03003930.2018.1465936CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Larsen, Erik G. (2019) ‘Policy feedback effects on mass publics: a quantitative review’, Policy Studies Journal 47(2): 372–394.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lassen, David Dreyer and Serritzlew, Søren (2011) ‘Jurisdiction size and local democracy: evidence on internal political efficacy from large-scale municipal reform’, American Political Science Review 105(2): 238–258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mabuchi, Masaru (2001) ‘Municipal Amalgamation in Japan’. Stock No. 37175, Washington, DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
Niemi, Richard, Craig, Stephen and Mattei, Franco (1991) ‘Measuring internal political efficacy in the 1988 national election study’, American Political Science Review 85(4): 1407–1413.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reif, Karlheinz and Schmitt, Hermann (1980) ‘Nine second-order national elections’, European Journal of Political Research 8(1): 3–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reingewertz, Yaniv (2012) ‘Do municipal amalgamations eork?’, Journal of Urban Economics 72(2): 240–251.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rodrigues, Miguel and Tavares, António (2020) ‘The effects of amalgamations on voter turnout’, Cities 101(June): 102685.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roesel, Felix (2017) ‘Do mergers of large local governments reduce expenditures?’, European Journal of Political Economy 50(December): 22–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sancton, Andrew (2000) Merger Mania, Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press.Google Scholar
Solé-Ollé, Albert and Bosch, Núria (2005) ‘On the relationship between authority size and the costs of providing local services’, Public Finance Review 33(3): 343–384.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Soukopová, Jana, Nemec, Juraj, Matějová, Lenka and Struk, Michal (2014) ‘Municipality size and local public services?’, Journal of Public Administration and Policy 7(2): 151–171.Google Scholar
Steiner, Reto, Kaiser, Claire and Eythórsson, Grétar (2016) ‘A comparative analysis of amalgamation reforms in selected European countries’, in Kuhlmann, Sabine, Bouckaert, Geert (eds.), Local Public Sector Reforms in Times of Crisis, London: Palgrave UK, pp. 23–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Strandberg, Kim and Lindell, Marina (2020) ‘Citizens’ attitudes towards municipal mergers’, Scandinavian Political Studies 43(4): 296–316.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Swianiewicz, Paweł (2010) Territorial Consolidation Reforms in Europe. Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative, Budapest: OSI.Google Scholar
Swianiewicz, Paweł, Gendźwiłł, Adam and Zardi, Alfonso (2017) Territorial Reforms in Europe: Council of Europe. Retrieved from https://rm.coe.int/territorial-reforms-in-europe-does-size-matter-territorial-amalgamatio/168076cf16.Google Scholar
Tavares, Antonio (2018) ‘Municipal amalgamations and their effects’, Miscellanea Geographica 22(1): 5–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Houwelingen, Pepijn (2017) ‘Political participation and municipal population size’, Local Government Studies 43(3): 408–428.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Voda, Petr and Svačinová, Petra (2020) ‘What matters for political representation in amalgamated municipalities?’, Urban Affairs Review 56(4): 1206–1236.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilson, James Q. (1973) Political Organizations, New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Zeedan, Rami (2017) ‘Size and democracy in Israeli amalgamated local governments’, Journal of Urban Affairs 39(5): 711–728.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Bolgherini and Paparo supplementary material

Appendix

Download Bolgherini and Paparo supplementary material(File)
File 246 KB