The Annuals of Japanese Political Science Association
Online ISSN : 1884-3921
Print ISSN : 0549-4192
ISSN-L : 0549-4192
Consequences of Electoral Reform for Rural-Urban Differences in Voter Turnout
Tetsuya Matsubayashi
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2023 Volume 74 Issue 1 Pages 1_273-1_296

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Abstract

  This study argues that the electoral reform in the 1990s accounts for declining differences in voter turnout between rural and urban districts. Drawing on that voter turnout was higher in rural districts with the greater number of seats per capita, I hypothesize that the smaller number of seats per seat as a result of the electoral reform reduced voter turnout in rural areas, which ultimately shrank the difference in voter turnout between rural and urban districts. This hypothesis is tested using data of the changes in the number of seats per capita at the district level and voter turnout at the municipality-level before and after the reform.

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