Vol. 21 · No. 1 · Issue 66 · Spring 2003

Russell J. Dalton and Wilhelm Bürklin

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Abstract

The 2002 Bundestag elections demonstrate the emerging new style of German electoral politics. Where once party competition was built upon a stable base of Stammwähler, the catchword for 2002 was the Wechselwähler-the changing voter. The traditional bonds to social groups, such as class and religion, have steadily eroded across Bundestag elections in the late twentieth century, and these bonds had a diminished impact in 2002. Similarly, this chapter will demonstrate that affective psychological ties that once connected citizens to their preferred party have also weakened. Certainly some German voters remain connected to a social milieu or a habitual party tie, but the number of these voters is steadily decreasing.