Voting behavior is informed by the experience of advanced democracies, yet the electoral context in developing democracies is significantly different. Civil society is often weak, poverty and inequality high, political parties ephemeral and attachments to them weak, corruption rampant, and clientelism widespread. Voting decisions in developing democracies follow similar logics to those in advanced democracies in that voters base their choices on group affiliation, issue positions, valence considerations, and campaign persuasion. Yet developing democracies differ in the weight citizens assign to these considerations. Where few social identity groups are politically salient and partisan attachments are sparse, voters may place more weight on issue voting. Where issues are largely absent from political discourse, valence considerations and campaign effects play a larger role. Campaigns and Voters in Developing Democracies develops a theoretical framework to specify why voter behavior differs across contexts.

Noam Lupu is Associate Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University and Associate Director of the Latin American Public Opinion Project.
Virginia Oliveros is Assistant Professor of Political Science and Associate Research Fellow at the Center for Inter-American Policy and Research and the Roger Thayer Stone Center for Latin American Studies at Tulane University.
Luis Schiumerini is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame.

“This timely volume—with a list of contributors that reads as a veritable who’s who of scholars of Latin American electoral politics—will undoubtedly be read by those with interests far beyond Argentinian politics. The collection of methodologically sophisticated chapters demonstrates that not only can top-notch analyses of voting behavior be conducted outside of advanced industrial democracies, but that many more such studies are needed in order for us to truly understand elections and voting in the modern world. This book is a wonderful example of how such studies should proceed.”
—Joshua A. Tucker, New York University

"...methodologically sophisticated..."
—Latin American Research Review

“The authors offer an innovative exploration of candidates and elections that successfully builds on previous work . . . This volume ably draws out the key generalizations that tie the bundle together, without neglecting the inevitable underlying tensions that remain from the ‘different’ pieces of the puzzle.”
—Michael Lewis-Beck, University of Iowa
 
“This volume analyzes the landmark 2015 Argentine presidential election to advance our understanding of voting behavior in developing democracies. As such, this book should be of interest to both scholars of Argentine politics as well as those interested in elections more broadly.”
—Sebastian Saeigh, University of California, San Diego

"This is an enlightening and rigorous volume that any specialist on voting behavior should read. The book proposes a theory of voting behavior in less-developed democracies which each chapter tests with excellent analysis using cross-sectional and panel survey data.  The book provides insights into voting behavior both in consolidated and young democracies by comparing Argentina to other democracies."
—Rosario Aguilar, Centro de Investigacion y Docencia Economicas

“Campaigns and Voters in Developing Democracies is a must-read for anyone interested in voting behavior, elections, and political parties in developing democracies. Leading experts on Argentine and Latin American electoral politics tackle pressing questions, such as: Why do wealthy voters vote differently than their lower-income fellow citizens? What impact do economic downturns have on incumbents and on party systems? Do voters perceive elections to be fair? The volume is of uniformly high quality and accessible to scholars and students.”
—Susan Stokes, University of Chicago

"Campaigns and Voters in Developing Democracies: Argentina in Comparative Perspective is an essential book in understanding voters’ choices, political elites’ behavior, and political parties in contemporary Argentina."
—Perspectives on Politics