Location of Public Goods and the Calculus of Voting: The Seattle Monorail Referendum

    Authors

    B. S. Kinsey; H. Bartling; A. F. Peterson;B. P. Baybeck

    Comments

    Authors: contact us about adding a copy of your work at STARS@ucf.edu

    Abbreviated Journal Title

    Soc. Sci. Q.

    Keywords

    POLITICAL-PARTICIPATION; PARTY; TURNOUT; CHOICE; Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary

    Abstract

    Objectives. In this article we explore how the geographic location of a proposed public good on the ballot in a local referendum influences voting turnout. We argue that voters who live farther away from the good, and are thus likely to bear the cost of the good but have no access to it, would be more motivated to turn out in the election. Drawing on the cost-orientation hypothesis, or negativity effect, "that people are more strongly motivated to avoid losses than to approach gains," we expect these voters to derive higher expressive benefits from the act of voting relative to those of voters located closer to the good. Methods. We examine voting turnout in the 2002 referendum in the City of Seattle on the proposed construction of a monorail. We conduct our study at the precinct level using spatial tools of analysis. We evaluate the effect of accessibility on turnout by means of a curvilinear model that incorporates demographic and political variables. Results. We find that voting turnout is determined partly by accessibility. Turnout is higher in precincts located farther away from the monorail line than in precincts located relatively closer to the line. Partisanship conditions this effect. Conclusions. This study provides tentative support for linking voter turnout to the negativity effect via expressive benefits. Voters' location in relation to a public good may affect directly their political behavior by means of their perceived net gains or losses from the good.

    Journal Title

    Social Science Quarterly

    Volume

    91

    Issue/Number

    3

    Publication Date

    1-1-2010

    Document Type

    Article

    Language

    English

    First Page

    741

    Last Page

    761

    WOS Identifier

    WOS:000280479400009

    ISSN

    0038-4941

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