Systemstöd och demokratiattityder i Baltikum

Abstract

Drawing on cross-national public opinion surveys from the spring of 2014, this article analyses popular support for democracy in the three Baltic states – more specifically the attitudinal differences between the ethnic majorities and the Russian-speaking minorities in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. It assesses the democratic political culture of the three countries 25 years after the fall of communism in Europe, 10 years after EU membership, a few years after the global financial crisis, and in the midst of the recent Russian–Ukrainian crisis. The data demonstrate widespread public dissatisfaction with democracy throughout the region, especially in Latvia, the country hardest hit by the crisis in 2008–2009. As a rule, the Russian-speaking minorities in the three Baltic states tend to be more critical of democracy than ethnic Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians.