Political knowledge and campaign effects in the 2008 Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty

Abstract

This article makes a distinction between the attitude component of campaigns and the knowledge component and argues that a campaign that influences knowledge of a proposal can be quite successful in influencing the vote. On June 12th 2008 Irish voters voted against ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. Perceptions, and especially misperceptions, of the Treaty played an important role in the referendum. The campaign focused in particular on influencing voters' perceptions of, rather than attitudes towards the Treaty. This article examines the interaction between knowledge, campaigns, and perceptions of the Treaty, in the referendum.