Willy Jou

The Heuristic Value of the Left-Right Schema in East Asia

The semantics of left and right provide an efficient heuristic to understand and organize political information. Most studies on the left—right schema have focused on established democracies, but the anchoring function that it serves for party systems may be particularly relevant in new democracies where partisanship has not taken root. This article investigates the heuristic value of left and right in East Asian democracies by examining survey data from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines. Data from Australia and New Zealand are also included for comparative purposes. These countries offer useful contrasts for hypotheses testing because they cover a wide range of democratic experiences and party-system stabilization. The following questions will be addressed: (1) Are publics in East Asian democracies familiar with the left—right dimension? (2) Can the publics locate the positions of political parties and consistently rank them on the left—right spectrum? (3) To what extent do the publics’ left—right self-placements affect their party preference? Left— right cognition, consistency of party rankings, and correlations between self-placements and attitudes toward parties for each of the six cases are presented and discussed in detail. Similarities and differences between older and newer democracies in patterns of cognition and party ranking are also discussed.

Left-right orientations and ideological voting in new democracies: A case study of Slovenia

Abstract The left–right schema encapsulates major political cleavages and constitutes an important link between voters and parties. Using election surveys in Slovenia covering the period 1992–2004, this study examines the anchoring of left–right orientations by social structure and party preference in Slovenia in comparison with other Central and Western European countries, and discusses differences in levels of ideological voting according to political sophistication, closeness to parties, support for the democratic process, perception of party system polarisation and preferred party. Results show that left–right orientations in post-communist societies are more anchored in partisanship than class and religion, and that higher education and perception of greater party system polarisation are associated with increased ideological voting.

Political cleavages in Serbia: Changes and continuities in structuring left-right orientations

This study examines the structuring of political attitudes in Serbia through the framework of the left–right schema. Using data from public opinion surveys taken during the 1990s and early 2000s, the impact of socio‐demographic variables, economic interests, democratic support, social values, and nationalistic sentiments on respondents’ left–right orientations is analysed, as well as the relationship between left–right placements and support for individual political parties. Results show that in addition to age and religiosity, evaluation of communist rule and satisfaction with the state of democratic development form the main axis of contestation, while there is little evidence for economic, authoritarian–libertarian, or nationalist cleavages.

The impact of supporters’ ideological preferences on parties’ coalition choices: Evidence from New Zealand and Japan

Works on coalition formation and survival have traditionally focused on tactical and policy considerations at the elite level, and frequently neglected the role of voters. This study draws attention to how policy preferences among supporters may constrain parties’ coalition choices and affect their subsequent electoral performance. New Zealand and Japan, which have seen both significant party system changes and the emergence of previously unfamiliar coalition cabinets as the new norm since the 1990s, provide suitable cases for hypothesis testing. Analysis of cross-temporal survey data demonstrates that the distance between the ideological mean of each coalition partner (measured by its supporters’ left—right positions) and the coalition mean is negatively correlated with its vote share change in the following election. Parties participating in or supporting an ideologically distant cabinet, especially when alternative coalition choices are possible, face particularly heavy electoral sanctions. These findings highlight a micro-political explanation complementing existing coalition theories, and confirm the ideal of democratic representation that governments are held accountable by their voters.

Toward a Two-Party System or Two Party Systems? Patterns of Competition in Japan’s Single-Member Districts, 1996-2005

This article examines whether electoral reform in Japan replacing a single non-transferable vote (SNTV) system with a parallel mixed system has led to two-party competition in single-member districts (SMDs) in House of Representative elections from 1996 to 2005. While nationwide figures suggest declining numbers of effective candidates and losers, distinguishing SMDs by levels of urbanization reveals that this trend is largely limited to urban areas. Instead of converging toward a two-party system as many proponents of electoral reforms had anticipated, elections under the SMD portion of the new system have witnessed the emergence and continuation of two distinct patterns of competition: urban constituencies featuring contests between two major parties, and rural constituencies dominated by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The persistence of the latter pattern diminishes the prospect of power alternation.

Political participation in Japan: A longitudinal analysis

There is a large volume of studies on political participation, including motivations for citizens to become involved in various channels of engagement. Building on this extensive literature, the present study examines factors that affect participation, with particular attention on the linear (conservative vs. progressive) and curvilinear (moderate vs. radical) impact of ideological orientations, and also considers the influence exerted by political interest and partisanship. Utilizing data from Japan spanning nearly three decades, we analyze changes and continuities in patterns of participation in four categories of activities: election turnout; campaigning; system-affirming; and elite-challenging. Empirical analysis reveals that radicals take a more active part in campaigning than moderates, and progressives are more inclined toward elite-challenging activities than conservatives, while no consistent results are found for turnout. The study also discusses possible causes and consequences of a long-term decline in participation in Japan.

THE 2007 JAPANESE HOUSE OF COUNCILLORS ELECTION

The 28 July 2007 House of Councillors election in Japan produced an opposition majority for the first time in history, as the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) wrested control of this upper chamber of parliament (Diet) from the governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)–Komeito coalition. While government composition is determined in the House of Representatives (lower chamber), where the governing parties still commands a two-thirds majority, prime minister Abe Shinzo stepped down in mid September in the face of legislative deadlock resulting from non-concurrent majorities in the two chambers. This report discusses the political background, electoral rules, results, and implications of the election, and comments on the prospects of government alternation in the near future.