Work

Policy or polity? Experimental evidence on voters’ information priorities in European parliament elections

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: European Parliament (EP) elections are among the world’s largest democratic events, but they are challenging for voters. Campaigns address issues ranging from the future of the polity to specific policies, with the European Parliament holding more power over the latter. To understand what information voters need to act in their interest, we examine what they prioritize when accurately informed about the EP’s powers. We use field experimental data from two Voting Advice Applications embedded on a major Danish news site during the 2024 EP election. Users were told that the EP has more influence over policy than polity issues, chose whether to receive advice based on policy or polity preferences, and stated their vote intention before or after receiving advice. Analyzing 66,000 users and a representative survey experiment (n=2951), we find that citizens prioritize policy over polity information under accurate information. These results have important implications for representation research, media and politicians.

Source: Electoral Studies

DOI: 10.1016/j.electstud.2026.103111

Authors: Mathias Wessel Tromborg, Roman Senninger, Andreas Videbæk Jensen

Institution: Aarhus University

Language: English

Topic: Electoral Systems and Political Participation

Subfield: Political Science and International Relations

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,840