Climate policy enjoys broad national approval but faces concentrated local opposition. This study investigates spatial voting patterns near renewable energy projects.
Data & Methods
Using natural experiments and statistical techniques (fixed effects, instrumental variables), we analyze voter behavior in proximity to wind turbines.
Key Findings
• Citizens living within 3km of wind turbines experienced ~4-10% electoral losses for incumbents
• Retrospective voting accounted for these localized preferences despite overall support for climate policy
• Voters demonstrated knowledge about the specific government's role in implementation
Real-world Significance
These findings reveal how spatially distributed costs can distort democratic accountability mechanisms. The "spatial backlash" phenomenon could create political barriers to renewable energy deployment.
| Electoral Backlash Against Climate Policy: A Natural Experiment on Retrospective Voting and Local Resistance to Public Policy was authored by Leah C. Stokes. It was published by Wiley in AJPS in 2016. |
