Politicizing Corruption

8/14/2019 Politicizing Corruption

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Politicizing Corruption

Andreas Bgenholm

2009 by Andreas Bgenholm. Power-point presented at the QoG Lunch Seminar 5 May, 2009

THE QUALITY OF GOVERNMENT INSTITUTE

Department of Political ScienceUniversity of Gothenburg

QoG Lunch Seminar 2009-05-05

The electoral impact of anti-corruption

discourse in Europe 1983-2007


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Theoretical underpinnings

Parties strategic choices in times of

Increasing voter volatility Decreasing party identification

Decreasing importance of old cleavages

Increasing difficulties for voters todistinguish between parties


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Party responses

Reorganization (more centralization,professionalization)

Recruiting different types of candidates

Focus on new issues

Focus on mode, not substance of policy

making, e.g. competence, transparency,cleanness etc.


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ConceptsPoliticization

When politicians bringan issue to the voters

knowledge

Political corruption

Politicians takingadvantage of their

position in order towin financial favorspersonally, for friendsor relatives or seekingadvantages for theparty. Not necessarilyillegal but by definitionmorally questionable.


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Election campaigns 1983-2007

Democracies(considered Free byFreedom House)

More than 100 000inhabitants

Parliamentary orsemi-presidentialsystems

32 countries (19West; 13 CEE)

184 elections (12

missing) 171 analyzed

elections (124 in West& 47 in CEE)


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Data

Electoral Studies(156)

West European

Politics (11) European Journal of

Political Research (4)

Corruption allegationsmade

By whom?

Against whom? Corruption scandals

in connection with the

election


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Party manifestoes 1983-2003

1034 manifestoes in30 countries (Ukraine& Serbia missing)

755 in Western

European countries &279 in CEE

Percentage of partiesin each electioncampaign that

mention anti-corruption

Average share ofsentences referring toanti-corruption


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Share of election campaigns containing corruption allegation

Corruption allegations Yes No

% n % n N

All countries 22,2 40 77,8 131 171

Western Europe 17,0 21 83,0 103 124

Central and Eastern Europe40,4 19 59,6 28 47

Source: Election reports in Electoral Studies, West European Politics and European Journal of Political Research.Comment: Central and Eastern Europe refers to the former Socialist one party systems.


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Corruption allegations in electioncampaigns in Europe 1983-2007 (%)

23.1

11.1

34.2

26.2

23.1

11.6

38.6

50

18.413.7

32

40

38.5

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1983-1987 1988-1992 1993-1997 1998-2002 2002-2007

Year

Percen

t

All countr ies Western Central and Eastern


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Anti-corruption in party manifestoes

All countriesWesternEurope

Central andEastern Europe

% of party manifestoescontaining anti-corruption

50 45 63

% of sentences

containing anti-corruption

1,17 1,07 1,46

Total number ofmanifestoes

1034 755 279

Total number ofelections

146 108 38

umber of countries 30 19 11

Source: Party manifesto data sets in Budge et al., 2001 and Klingemann et al., 2006.Comment: Manifesto data covers the period 1983-2003 (except for UK for which there is data also for 2005).Thus, there is no data on Serbia and Ukraine.


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Politicization of political corruption by country

Country

Corruptionallegations,% ofcampaigns

Anti-cor-ruption, % ofmani-festoes

Anti-cor-ruption in% ofsentences Country

Corruptionallegations,% ofcampaigns

Anti-cor-ruption, % ofmani-festoes

Anti-corruption in% ofsentences

Ukraine 100 - - Estonia 20 55 1,19

Lithuania 67 85 1,28 Ireland 17 51 0,66

Romania 67 84 1,61 Belgium 14 83 1,47

Austria 63 72 2,52 Finland 14 18 0,81

Malta 60 100 3,57 Slovakia 0 64 1,58

Poland 50 43 1,35 Netherlands 0 53 0,15

Slovenia 50 26 0,72 Croatia 0 50 0,95

Latvia 40 62 1,94 France 0 45 0,73

Greece 38 100 4,09 UK 0 39 0,40

Czech R. 33 70 1,61 Germany 0 35 0,26

Iceland 33 26 1,04 Luxemburg 0 27 0,29

Italy 29 68 2,30 Switzerland 0 19 0,18

Portugal 25 76 1,52 Norway 0 11 0,03

Bulgaria 25 59 1,44 Denmark 0 8 0,12

Hungary 20 69 2,02 Sweden 0 0 0Spain 20 56 0,95 Serbia 0 - -


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Characteristics of parties using corruption allegations

Ideologicalorientation Incumbency Established

Left Right Yes No Yes No

n % n % n % n % n % n %

13 28 32 70 6 11 49 89 42 76 12 22

Source: Woldendorp et al. , 1998; Mller-Rommel et al., 2004.Comment: On the left-right dimension each party is counted only once. As incumbency and newness maychange from one election to the next, all parties in all elections are included on these two variables.In one case, Lega Nord, both the ideological belonging and the extent of newness were unclear.


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Anti-corruption parties

46 different parties, in 40 elections 18 West European; 28 CEE.

21 parties are big, influential, well

established. Only FP can be consideredpopulist in this category.

12 new parties

9 minor, mainstream parties 4 extremist parties.


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Most successful parties using anti-corruption rhetoric

Party Country Year + Left-right New Opp Gov.

National Movement Simon II Bulgaria 2001 42,7 R X X X

Labour Party Lithuania 2004 28,4 L X X X

Union of Democratic Forces Bulgaria 1997 28,1 R X X

Res Publica Estonia 2003 24,6 R X X X

New Era Latvia 2002 23,9 R X X X

Democratic Renewal Party Portugal 1985 17,9 L X X

Law and Justice Poland 2005 17,5 R X X

Civic Platform Poland 2007 17,4 R X X

Party of Democratic SocialismRomania 2000 15,1 L X X

Democratic Party Slovenia 2004 13,3 R X X

Liberal Democratic Party Lithuania 2004 11,4 R X X

Civic Democratic Party Czech R. 2006 10,9 R X X

Socialist Party Bulgaria 1994 10,4 L X X

Democratic Convention Romania 1996 10,2 R X X

Source: Election reports in Electoral Studies, West European Politics and European Journal of Political Research.Woldendrop et al. , 1998; Mller-Rommel et al., 2004.


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Top ranking parties in terms of anti-corruption in party manifestoes

Party Country Year

% Anti-cor-ruption inmanifestoes

Left-right New Opp +/- Gov

Confederation for anIndependent Poland

Poland 1991 27,37ER X 7,5

Republicans Czechosl. 1992 22,45 ER X 5,0

Freedom Party Austria 1994 21,11 R X 5,9

Social Movement-Right

National

Italy 1992 18,37

ER X -0,5Democratic Renewal Party Portugal 1985 16,07

L Y 17,9

Party of Democratic Left Italy 1992 12,59L

Y/N-10,5

New Democracy Greece 1989:1 12,03 R X 3,5

Coalition Left and Progress Greece 1989:1 11,86 L X 1,4

Coalition Left and Progress Greece 1989:2 11,86 L X -1,9

National Party (SNS) Slovenia 2000 10,53 R X 1,2

New Democracy (ND), Greece 1989:2 10,29 R X 1,9

Source: Party manifesto data sets in Budge et al. (2001) and Klingemann et al. 2006 .


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Shifts in government

Allegations

All cases = 42% 65%

High corrupt = 64% 92%Medium corrupt = 57% 78%

Low corrupt = 31% No allegations

Corruption scandal = 41%


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Conclusions

Increasing trend of anti-corruption rhetoric. The difference between east and west is widening. Large variation in politicizing political corruption among

the countries studied.

Corruption is not politicized in low corrupt countries. Politicizing political corruption is not an extremist orpopulist phenomenon

The issue appears to be under rather than overpoliticized

Corruption allegations make a difference for the outcomeof elections in medium and highly corrupt countries New parties are more inclined to use anti-corruption

rhetoric

Documents

Politicizing Corruption