Abstract
We investigate the long term change of class based cleavages in party preferences in Germany and analyze especially developments since Germany’s reunification. Did a similar association between class positions and the party system emerge in the new Länder? What are the consequences of the formation of a new leftist party in Germany? We find that the traditional cleavage between the working classes and the owning classes has substantially weakened. In contrast, the new interest based differences in view of the ‘New Politics’ which has emerged in the 1980 between different segments of the service class remained stable. In East Germany the pattern of class based party preferences has become rather similar to the one in West Germany.
| Translated title of the contribution | The class basis of the party preference of the German voter: erosion or change? |
|---|---|
| Original language | German |
| Title of host publication | Wählen in Deutschland |
| Editors | Rüdiger Schmitt-Beck |
| Place of Publication | Baden-Baden |
| Pages | 85-110 |
| Number of pages | 26 |
| Publication status | Published - 2012 |
Keywords
- social class
- party preference
- voting behavior