Electoral re-alignments in legislative elections, 1983-1999: social structures, the economy and the party vote

Abstract

The legislative elections held in the period between 1985 and 1999 were characterised by high volatility (1985-1995) and by a concentration of votes in the two largest parties (1987-1999). Several authors consider that these phenomena are the result of a decline of the electoral impact of the social structures. However, the existence of such a decline has never been effectively tested. By analysing aggregated data, this article evaluates the impact of social structures and the economy on how the Portuguese voted in the legislative elections between 1983 and 1999.