Zwischen Wahlkreisreduzierung und Bürgernähe: Zur aktuellen Reformdiskussion des Wahlrechts in Baden-Württemberg

Abstract

Discussions on the reform of the electoral law have so far mostly been conducted without the perspective of the sovereign . Therefore, given the current reform discussion and the change of the electoral law in Baden-Württemberg, we examine whether reducing the number of electoral districts leads citizens to perceive the relationship between citizens and representatives as less close . This concern is often cited as an argument against increasing the size of electoral districts . Already now, the electoral districts of the Landtag Baden-Württemberg vary in size . This allows us to analyze whether citizens perceive the relationship between representatives and themselves to be closer in smaller districts . We analyze this question based on the data of the “Demokratie-Monitoring Baden-Württemberg 2016/2017” . 2 .501 respondents from all electoral districts answered questions on their perceived political responsiveness and satisfaction with democracy, which allows us to measure the closeness of the relationship between representatives and citizens, at least indirectly . Our results and model calculations show that respondents in larger districts do not feel more distant to their representatives than respondents in smaller districts . Our results are consistent with similar studies at the federal level . Thus, we conclude that reducing the number of electoral districts can be a sensible remedy against an undesirably large parliament .