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The Authentic Ahole: Candidate Consistency, Causality, and the Vote
Journal article   Peer reviewed

The Authentic Ahole: Candidate Consistency, Causality, and the Vote

Sofia Breitenstein, John Kenny, Jac Larner, Dieter Stiers and Michael S. Lewis-Beck
Polity, Vol.57(2), pp.240-252
04/01/2025
DOI: 10.1086/734478
url
https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/98620/1/Polity_paper_-_accepted.pdfView
Open Access

Abstract

Despite politicians’ authenticity being increasingly invoked in public discourse to explain their electoral fortunes, empirical research on the trait in electoral studies remains nascent. Here we advance our knowledge through a vignette survey experiment carried out on a national British sample. Firstly, we demonstrate that respondents are more likely to perceive a hypothetical politician as authentic when that politician resists political pressure in order to maintain a consistency between their stated policy positions and their political actions. This is the case whether respondents agree with their policy position or not. We also show that a candidate being perceived as authentic carries electoral benefits for them. Furthermore, consistency between a politician’s policy position and their actions enhances citizens’ perception of authenticity, consequently increasing the likelihood that they will vote for that politician. This study contributes to understanding authenticity in politics, offering valuable insights into the causal mechanisms of its electoral implications.
 Immigration authenticity vote intention consistency survey experiment policy position

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