Why parties take up digitization in their manifestos: An empirical analysis of eight Western European economies

Abstract

While digital change already creates pressures for policy change, it remains a marginal issue at elections. It is thus risky for parties to signal commitment to this emerging topic while other issues still dominate. Nevertheless, in recent elections several parties have given more space in their manifestos to digitization. To answer the question why this is the case, this paper stresses the role of costs and programmatic spill-overs in issue competition. It posits that parties emphasize digitization more in their manifestos if their costs for claiming competence on the issue are reduced due to a policy record in government; if parties have relatively more to lose from the status quo; and if digitization is compatible with their programmatic orientation. Evidence from an analysis of a select sample of eight Western European countries between 2010 and 2018 supports these expectations and sheds light on why parties invest into an emerging topic.