Decoupling is in the Eye of the Beholder? European Parliament Voting and Perceptions of Economic Indivisibility in Europe

Fogarty, Edward A, (2015) Decoupling is in the Eye of the Beholder? European Parliament Voting and Perceptions of Economic Indivisibility in Europe. [Conference Proceedings] (Submitted)

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Abstract

The rise of Euroskeptic or anti-­‐European Union (EU) parties in the European Parliament (EP) has been popularly attributed to citizens’ frustrations with economic stagnation and an out-­‐of-­‐touch, pro-­‐EU political elite. The EU’s defenders have, in turn, argued that policies promoted by anti-­‐EU parties, such as leaving the euro or rolling back the EU’s single market, are economically irrational due to the deep interdependence of EU economies. Do voters actually perceive their national economy to be linked to that of the EU, and do pro-­‐EU parties fare better or worse in countries where such a linkage is more extensively perceived? This paper examines the conceptual and empirical contours of Euroskepticism in EP elections, and assesses the possible effects of publically perceived economic interdependence on these election results. The paper ultimately aims to speak to the EU’s popular legitimacy and the status of Robert Schuman’s goal to attain “concrete achievements which…create a de facto solidarity.”

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