Effects of Electoral System Change on the Partisan Bias of Electoral Reformers

ABSTRACT This paper analyzes how electoral system change affects the electoral performance of those parties that initiate these reforms. The hypothesis is that those who created the new system benefited from it in two possible ways: they improved their partisan bias compared to the previous election, or they had a better partisan bias than other parties. The analysis uses a global dataset that includes almost all democratic elections that took place between 1974 and 2017. The paper finds that electoral reformers had no discernible advantage compared to other parties, suggesting that either partisan electoral engineering is not as widely practiced as previously believed, or parties are not efficient at executing it. Related Articles Nohlen, D. 2008. “Constitutional Jurisdiction and the Consolidation of Democracy.” Politics & Policy 37, no. 1: 3–30. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747‐1346.2008.00159.x . Raymond, C. 2018. “Socioeconomic Development and Party System Fragmentation Cross‐Nationally.” Politics & Policy 46, no. 5: 731–758. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12272 . Zafirovski, M. 2022. “Toward a New Political Democracy Index: Construction, Validation, and Calculation for Individual Societies and Types of Society.” Politics & Policy 50, no. 4: 663–699. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12488 .