Electoral Persuasion in the New Democracies Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

How do political aspirants seek to persuade voters to their side in new democracies? In general, populations in such countries are poorer, less politically experienced, and less able to access information than their counterparts in older democracies; these differences shape the types of persuasive strategies that parties and candidates employ. This article examines four general persuasive strategies in newer democracies, including those involving distributional appeals, ascriptive identities, program-related promises, and messaging using mass media.