Voter Sophistication and Coalition Politics: How Ideological Awareness Shapes Government Formation in Multiparty Democracies

When negotiating the formation of governments in multiparty democracies, do party leaders consistently consider the policy preferences of their voters? Voter Sophistication and Coalition Politics introduces a theoretical framework that places voters-particularly their ideological sophistication-at the heart of coalition bargaining. It challenges existing approaches that portray elite bargaining as isolated from voter reactions, demonstrates that parties anticipate and respond to potential v...