De Nederlandse kiezers en het partijbestel

Abstract

This article is a descriptive analysis of some data from a national survey, consisting of interviews with 4292 Dutch voters in 64 municipalities, held by the Free University (Amsterdam) immediately after the general elections of February 15, 1967, A distinction is made between primary and secondary party identification. Primary party identification is measured by the questions ’To which political party do you fee closest?’ (the direction dimension) and ’How close do you feel to this party? Very close, close, not close, not close at all?’ (the intensity dimension). Secondary party identification is measured by the question: ’If the party you just mentioned did not exist, to which party would you then feel closest?’ In table 1 the answers on the latter question are combined with party choice in 1967. The abbreviations of the names of the parties and their percentages of the total vote in 1967 are: KVP = Catholic People’s Party (26.5%); PvdA = Labour Party (23,6%); VVD = People’s Party for Liberty and Democracy (10,7%); ARP = Anti-Revolutionary Party (9,9%); CHU = Christian Historical Union (8,1%); BP = Farmers Party (4,8%); PSP = Pacifist Socialist Party (2,9%); CPN = Communist Party (3,6%); SGP = State Reformed Party (2,0%); CPV = Reformed Political League (0,9%); D’66 = Democrats ’66 (4,5%). The sum of the percentage of voters of party A which are secondary identifiers of party B and the percentage of voters of party B which ate secondary identifiers of party A is called the index of the extent of affinity between two parties (at the level of the voters). The remainder after subtraction of the two percentages is called the index of the direction (one-sidedness or two-sidedness) of affinity between two parties. The aversion against other parties is measured by the question: ’Against which two parties in the Netherlands do you have most objections?’ The sum of the relevant percentages of two parties is called the index of the extent of aversion between two parties. The remainder after subtraction of the two percentages is called the index of the direction of aversion between two parties. On the basis of closed questions directed to the voters of a particular party, on their images of that party, their reasons for voting to that party, a typology of Dutch political parties is developed. The types are: principle parties (KVP, ARP, CHU, SGP, GPV), interest parties (PvdA, VVD, BP, CPN) leader parties (KVP, ARP, VVD, GPV), traditional parties (KVP, CHU, SGP), nonpolitical parties (CHU, BP) effective political parties (PvdA) and international political parties (PSP, CPN). Other data on several kinds of perceptions of voters concerning patties are added.