POLI 113A: East Asian Thought in Comparative Perspective
GENUINE EXPERTS
W4a-PoliticsintheEuropeanUnion1.pptxPublic Opinion and EU Politics
Reading:
Hix and Høyland CH 5-6
1
Guiding Questions
What is Eurobarometer?
What trends are we seeing in European public opinion relating to trust and optimism with the European Union?
How have patterns of support for the EU varied over time?
What similarities/differences do we see in EU elections and elections in other advanced democracies?
2
EU Public Opinion
Public opinion is defined as:
“those opinions held by private persons which governments find it prudent to heed.” — V.O. Key
Include views on economics, politics, institutional trust, etc.
Eurobarometer “taps into” public opinion on a wide range of issues
1973-present
3
EU Public Opinion: The Permissive Consensus
Hix and Høyland 2011
Benefits of integration seen as obvious in early stages
“Permissive consensus” existed early within the integration process
Mainstream parties from left and right favored integration
Governments given wide berth
4
EU Public Opinion: The Permissive Consensus
Hix and Høyland 2011
Support peaked in early 1990s.
“Permissive consensus” evaporated
Integration is an election issue
Multiple explanations
End of the Cold War
Unification of Germany
Passage of Maastricht Treaty
Adoption of the euro
Eurobarometer 2018: Views of the European Union
Eurobarometer 2018: Trust in the EU
Eurobarometer 2018: Trust in the EU
EUROBAROMETER 2018: my VOICE COUNTS…
EUROBAROMETER 2018: my VOICE COUNTS…
EU Public Opinion: Support for the EU
Hix and Høyland 2011
Levels of support are not uniform
Some states more supportive of EU…
…Others are more skeptical
What explains these differences?
Differences along left/right and integration/demarcation cleavages
Visibility of EU makes issues salient
Views of EU, national government, and personal experiences
Eurobarometer suggests citizens have strong opinions about the EU…
Although many do not really know much about it
11
What Explains Support? National Level PREDICTORS
SUPPORT
Hix and Høyland 2011
Trust/satisfaction with national democracy
EU strengthens national identity
Wealthier countries
Net exporters
States with higher budget deficits
OPPOSITION
Hix and Høyland 2011
Belief that EU weakens national identity
Poorer countries
Net importers
States with lower budget deficits
12
What Explains Support? Individual Level PREDICTORS
SUPPORT
Hix and Høyland 2011
High income
High skill level
Workers with mobile skills
Students and the elderly
Citizens of EU-15
Farmers (generally)
Immigrants
Elites
OPPOSITION
Hix and Høyland 2011
Low income
Low skill level
Workers without mobile skills
Middle aged citizens
Unemployed
13
Eurobarometer 2018: future of the EU
Eurobarometer 2018: FUTURE OF THE EU
EUROBAROMETER 2018: BETTER OFF OUTSIDE THE EU?
Elections in the EU
Hix and Høyland 2011
Elections are critical in representative democracies
Delegation mechanisms
Voters elect governments
Government enact policies
Elections as referendums on governments
Reduces agency slack
Parties compete to form government and enact policies
“Competitive party government”
But the European Union does not follow this process
No EU government (executive) is directly elected
No EU wide referendums are held over treaties
17
Elections in the EU
Hix and Høyland 2011
EP is the only directly elected body
“Second order” elections
Growing EP role resulting in a more professionalized chamber despite “second order elections”
Party groups are more cohesive
MEPs vote as party group members rather than as national delegations
MEPs worry about national party first for re-selection, but career prospects within EP require working within party groups
If you want to be re-elected: support national party
If you want to chair committees: support EU party group
18
Partisan Composition Across Institutions
Hix and Høyland 2011
As party groups professionalize, they become more cohesive
Seek to advance their agenda
Parties of the right currently hold pluralities/majorities in the Commission, European Council, Council of Ministers, and the EP
So, institutional control by parties of the center-right means a center-right agenda is enacted, right?
Not exactly
Transnational party cooperation weak in Council of Ministers and Commission
Grand coalitions in the EP are common
Needed for quorum and to provide a united front vis-à-vis Commission
Different groups coalesce on different issues
19
Conclusions: A Democratic Deficit?
Hix and Høyland 2011
As EU institutions become more professionalized they also become more political
But EU politics does not always mirror democratic political structures
Direct elections (EP) and indirect elections (other institutions) are not linked to policy agendas
Executive authority vested in unelected Commission
President of the Commission not directly elected
European treaties typically approved by parliaments and not via referendums
Ireland is an exception
EU conceivably “governs for the people” through a mix of directly and indirectly elected institutions
But policy competition is missing from this process
Voters cannot select between alternative policy visions in these elections
Is this problematic?
20
Next Unit
Theme: Interest Articulation in the European Union
Hix CH 7 (Interest Groups)
21
