Electoral geography and the post-socialist city: Is the pre-world war II urban tissue still important? Evidence from Bucharest at the Romanian parliamentary elections of 2016

Abstract

Context is essential for electoral geography. However, most electoral geography studies place little emphasis on constructing a theoretical framework informed by the geographical nature of the context. The present paper takes issue with these. In this regard, for understanding the geographical context of interest a thorough theoretical and factual representation is provided. Bucharest, a former socialist city, is described through its division between the historical pre-socialist urban tissue and the socialist developments. The hypothesis suggests electoral patterns overlapping this socio-spatial division. This is investigated at the Romanian parliamentary election of 2016. Spatial econometrics are used to analyze electoral data at the level of 278 polling locations in Bucharest. A strong polarization is found between the old town and the other places in Bucharest. Final discussions speak about the still important socialist past for cities and politics.