Key Points
• Politicians increasingly, and deliberately, seek to make voters angry.
• Eliciting voters’ anger comes at a cost. When voters are angry, they are more likely to express distrust in the national government. This distrust is problematic because trust in government can facilitate bipartisan cooperation and maintain support for social welfare programs.
• Nevertheless, incentives to elicit anger remain strong for political elites because voter anger helps politicians win elections. Absent a shift in the incentive structure that politicians face, expect voter anger to continue to rise. CONT.
Steven Webster (Indiana U.-Bloomington), Sabato’s Crystal Ball
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