Different Arenas, Different Attitudes: Partisan Inconsistency in the Canadian Federal System

Abstract

Party identification occupies a prominent place in contemporary theory and empirical research. Although its dimensions, sources, and implications for political choice have received considerable attention, the effect of political-institutional contexts on partisan attachments remains largely unexplored. We examine the patterns of such attachments in a system with differing arenas of citizen participation, government responsiveness, and political parties at the national and subnational levels. We suggest that a confluence of long- and short-term forces operates to influence partisan attitudes at both levels of government, and that these attitudes, net of other factors, are important determinants of public issue concerns, leader evaluations, and electoral choice. The correlates and consequences of partisan inconsistency in contemporary Canada are assessed using survey data from a series of studies conducted during the past two decades.