Citation

Discussion Paper Details

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Title: The geography of EU discontent

Author(s): Lewis Dijkstra, Hugo Poelman and Andr�s Rodr�guez-Pose

Publication Date: October 2019

Keyword(s): Anti-Europeanism, anti-system voting, economic decline, education, European Union, industrial decline, migration and populism

Programme Area(s): International Trade and Regional Economics

Abstract: Support for parties opposed to EU-integration has risen rapidly and a wave of discontent has taken over the EU. This discontent is purportedly driven by the very factors behind the surge of populism: differences in age, wealth, education, or economic and demographic trajectories. This paper maps the geography of EU discontent across more than 63,000 electoral districts in the EU-28 and assesses which factors push anti-EU voting. The results show that anti-EU vote is mainly a consequence of local economic and industrial decline in combination with lower employment and a less educated workforce. Many of the other suggested causes of discontent, by contrast, matter less than expected or their impact varies depending on levels of opposition to European integration.

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Bibliographic Reference

Dijkstra, L, Poelman, H and Rodr�guez-Pose, A. 2019. 'The geography of EU discontent'. London, Centre for Economic Policy Research. https://cepr.org/active/publications/discussion_papers/dp.php?dpno=14040