In explaining the rise of populism, it’s not economic anxiety vs. identity politics – it’s both

Deindustrialization has decimated the blue-collar workforce in the US. … Our research examines the effects of deindustrialization on electoral politics.

Specifically, we explore how deindustrialization affected voting in three US presidential elections (2008-2016), using county-level data which captures localized manufacturing job losses. Our argument is that responses to what we call economic ‘shocks’ like deindustrialization depend on people’s social identities which come from belonging to a specific group. We argue that some white voters, who perceive themselves as the dominant economic and social group, view deindustrialization as a threat to their social and economic status. As a result, these white voters in affected areas are more likely to vote for reactionary candidates who promise to address economic distress—through trade wars, for instance—and to defend racial hierarchy. CONTINUED

Leonardo Baccini (McGill) & Stephen Weymouth (Georgetown), LSE USAPP


The OPINION TODAY email newsletter is a concise daily rundown of significant new poll results and insightful analysis. It’s FREE. Sign up here: opiniontoday.substack

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.