What roles do elections play in democracy?
The Polish General Election Study (PGSW) carried out by SWPS University’s Center for the Study of Democracy sheds a lot of light on this matter. PGSW looks for answers to main questions pertaining to voters’ behavior. In Poland, elections constitute the main act of the sovereign, which shapes the Polish social and political life as well as the functioning of social, economic and political institutions. Elections play many roles, but four of them seem to be of key importance.
Firstly, elections are a procedure aimed at selecting members of the ruling bodies. Citizens, either directly indicate individuals (or groups) who will hold power, or they choose representatives who in turn will appoint members of the executive. The upcoming European elections will be the same.
Secondly, elections are procedures of reckoning. We assess the people who have been governing the country for the past few years, i.e. those who won the previous election. We assess their engagement, initiatives, and effectiveness. We align their election promises with their implementation and check how they have fared. We also assess the stance and initiatives of the losers of the last election, i.e. the members of the opposition.
Thirdly, elections are procedures of legitimization – by participation in elections, citizens validate the system.
Fourthly, and finally, elections are procedures of aggregating interests. The election process allows us to recognize and articulate political preferences of citizens, their attitudes and beliefs.
Factors influencing voters turnout in Poland
As a rule, participation in elections depends not only on the systemic, but also individual factors. Nevertheless, the systemic factors, which directly or indirectly influence citizens’ behavior (e.g., compulsory voting, absentee voting (by mail), proxy voting, frequency of elections, their proportionality, etc.) do not explain the internal diversity in a given country. They can, however, explain differences between countries.
The individual factors can be divided into social and political. The observation that voters turnout is unequally spread between social and political groups should be acknowledged as one of the most significant “discoveries” of political science.
So, what do we know about active (and passive) voting behaviors of Poles, based on the afore-mentioned research? Firstly, electoral participation in Poland is related to the social structure. It turns out that it is strongly correlated with gender (women vote less often), age (middle age people vote often, the young and old less frequently), education (the higher the level of education, the more often people vote), affluence (poorer people are more passive), and the frequency of participation in religious practices (regular churchgoers participate in elections more often).
Electoral participation in Poland is related to the social structure. It turns out that it is strongly correlated with gender (women vote less often), age (middle age people vote more often than the young and old people), education (the higher the level of education, the more often people vote), affluence (poorer people are more passive), and the frequency of participation in religious practices (regular churchgoers participate in elections more frequently).
Cześnik, Mikołaj
political scientist
Role in the Faculty
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Role in the Department
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Role in the Institute
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Specialization
sociologist and political scientist, specializes in analysis of political systems
First and last name
Mikołaj Cześnik
Academic degree or title
Ph.D. / Associate Professor
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Discipline
political-science-and-public-administration
Position
profesor uczelni
Role in the Research Center
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Ph.D. / Associate Professor Mikołaj Cześniksociologist and political scientist, specializes in the analysis of poitical systems
Why high voters turnout is important in democracy?
In contemporary large democracies (including Poland), participation in elections is of fundamental importance for the realization of one of the crucial values of the democratic system – equality. Only, “non-skewed” from the social point of view, participation in the elections can result in equal representation, which in turn is a necessary condition for ensuring political influence of all social groups, strata and classes. Furthermore, one’s position in a social structure constitutes a source of resources indispensable for political participation, including participation in elections. Status characteristics, however, are not the only factors that differentiate active and passive Polish voters. They differ, in an equally significant way, in their psychological profiles, beliefs, attitudes, which are often linked with structural variables (mainly with the level of education). Additionally, participation in elections is strongly correlated with interest in politics. Voting is merely “a behavioral culmination” of a complicated and multifaceted social process with complex roots. Another individual characteristic, strongly linked with participation in elections, is a conviction about one’s “civic duty” to vote. Numerous empirical analysis prove that this is one of the variables, which best explain voters’ engagement. Equally important is one’s conviction about political agency, strong identification with a political party, a belief that one’s vote is important, it matters, and it can influence election results.
The above-mentioned results provide a significant argument in the discussion about the condition of Polish democracy. They show why we should be concerned about the low voters turnout in Poland. The presented analysis clearly indicates that in our country, some social groups, such as women, youth, the elderly, the less affluent, the less religious, and those with lower level of education, are systematically underrepresented in the group of citizens, who make the most important decisions for our nation (and voting is a procedure of group decision making). When these groups remain outside of the group decision making process, it probably impacts election results and then the policies, which are implemented. The lack of their representation and lack of political impact must influence their assessment of the system. And the diminishing satisfaction with democracy, which constitutes a threat to its legitimacy, may result in dangerous, and even ominous consequences.