Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/334542 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Citation: 
[Journal:] British Journal of Political Science [ISSN:] 1469-2112 [Volume:] 55 [Article No.:] e128 [Publisher:] Cambridge University Press [Place:] Cambridge [Year:] 2025 [Pages:] 1-22
Publisher: 
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Abstract: 
How do voters react to new political actors? Recent research suggests that radical right party success can provoke electoral backlash. We argue that such backlash is not exclusive to the radical right but can emerge whenever new political actors disrupt the status quo. With very distinct policy positions and behaviour, Green parties were early disruptors of post-war party systems in Europe. Using first-difference and difference-in-differences designs with voting records from Germany, we show that Green party success provoked a conservative backlash. After the Greens entered state parliaments, the Christian Democrats gained support. Using additional evidence from election surveys, we find that Green party success reinforces feelings of animosity among conservatives, mainly driven by disapproval of the Greens’ behaviour. These results highlight a broader pattern of backlash against new disruptive political actors. Our findings are especially relevant as polarization and party system fragmentation intensify across many established democracies.
Subjects: 
political backlash
new parties
Green parties
voting behaviour
polarization
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Creative Commons License: 
cc-by Logo
Document Type: 
Article
Document Version: 
Published Version

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