Ties That No Longer Bind? Effects and Responsiveness of Party Attachments in a Period of Crises

Abstract

Party attachments shape perceptions of the political context, but neither are they fixed nor do they completely blind supporters to political reality. When severe challenges like the European sovereign debt or refugee crises force parties to change their policies or make formerly inconsequential positions salient, party identifiers may find their policy preferences at odds with their party identification. This may lead them to adopt their party's position. However, if inconsistent positions are sufficiently important, party identifiers may also loosen their party ties. The chapter uses survey data from the GLES campaign panels 2009-2017 to show how these crises prompted identifiers to follow the party line in some cases but more often weakened or even eroded party attachments among supporters with strong issue positions. In effect, the Euro crisis and, in particular, the refugee crisis appears to have contributed to an issue-based reshuffling of the partisan balance in German politics.