Inequality & Democracy

When people think about threats to democracy they think about attacks on the media, freedom of expression, human rights, free and fair elections. They think about the core democratic institutions and how to protect them. And they are right. Human rights, the rule of law and the integrity and fairness of elections come increasingly under pressure in democracies across the globe fuelled by dissatisfaction with the political system and right-wing populist rhetoric.

But: What is often missing in the analysis is the role of social and economic insecurities people face that drive their dissatisfaction. Democratic dissatisfaction is very much an economic story as well. People do have worries about their current and future personal prospects. We think it is thus paramount if we care to protect democratic institutions we need to look at economic conditions of what makes people dissatisfied. Asking the economic question is what our work in Inequality & Democracy is about.  

Unequal Democracies

Elections and parliaments are the heart of democracies. In elections we exercise our right to vote to figure out who should govern us and what direction and policies our societies should undertake. We elect our representatives who sit in parliament and deliberate on how to weigh the preferences and interests of their constituents. This right to vote was hard-earned over the course of history. But more and more people do not exercise their right to vote anymore. Who are the non-voters? Are they simply disinterested in politics or do they no longer believe it matters what they say and who they elect? 

In comparative reports, we look at the general trends of non-voting and representation in democracies of the OSCE region. We gather comparative data that allows us to compare countries with each other and delve into the general developments of how our elemental democratic process of voting and representation have evolved over the years.

In country reports, we dive deeper into country-specifics, providing original analyses and formulate concrete policy recommendations.

Comparative Report: Who does (not) vote?

In Who does (not) vote? we look at voter turnout trends in 30 OSCE countries over time. We harmonize existing data sources since 1970 and made them comparable across gender, age groups, social classes and levels of education.

Key Findings

Voter turnout declines – but socially unequally

Social class is the biggest predictor of voting

The young turn their back on elections

Unequal democracies: who does (not) vote?

Elsässer, Lea; Schäfer, Armin; Wenker, Jonas

Unequal democracies: who does (not) vote?

Voter turnout trends in the OSCE region since 1970 : A translation of the German orginal "Wer geht (nicht) wählen?"
Wien, 2022

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Explore the corresponding data & graphs here.

Comparative Report: Who does (not) have a seat in parliament?

In Who does (not) have a seat in parliament?  we look at how representative the current parliaments of United Kingdom, France, Spain, Poland and Turkey are across four socio-economic parameters gender, age, social class and levels of education.

This is a primary data study where information on representatives were single-handedly collected by the project team and verified. For classifying the social classes, we use Daniel Oesch’s class scheme system based on 4 main classes: working class, small business owners, lower-grade service class, and upper service class. Those four main social classes can be further differentiated into 16 classes in total based on to different work logics within social classes.

Key Findings

Women are underrepresented

Almost no young people sit in parliaments

We live in 'diploma democracies'

Very few workers sit in parliaments

Unequal democracies: who does (not) have a seat in parliament?

Elsässer, Lea; Schäfer, Armin

Unequal democracies: who does (not) have a seat in parliament?

The social composition of Parliaments in five OSCE countries : A translation of the German orginal "Wer sitzt (nicht) im Parlament?"
Vienna, 2022

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Explore the corresponding data & graphs here.

Country Reports

In the country reports we look closer at specific country cases. The reports introduce novel data sets, specific analyses of voters and non-voters and include specific policy recommendations what could be done to counter the effects of inequalities on our democratic processes. The reports either look at voting or representation.

In 2024 15 reports are scheduled to be published covering 9 countries.

Croatia

Published: 11 March 2024

German versions

Ungleiche Demokratien: wer sitzt (nicht) im Parlament?

Elsässer, Lea; Schäfer, Armin

Ungleiche Demokratien: wer sitzt (nicht) im Parlament?

Die soziale Zusammensetzung der Parlamente in fünf OSZE-Ländern
Wien, 2022

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Ungleiche Demokratien: wer geht (nicht) wählen?

Elsässer, Lea; Schäfer, Armin; Wenker, Jonas

Ungleiche Demokratien: wer geht (nicht) wählen?

Die Entwicklung der Wahlbeteiligung im OSZE-Raum seit 1970
Wien, 2022

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Updates

21.03.2024

DNEVNIK • Bartul Vuksan-Ćusa


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21.03.2024

RTL Croatia • Michael Jennewein


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08.03.2024

12.03.2024 • 10:00 • Novinarski dom, Zagreb


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