Harassment and Intimidation of Parliamentary Candidates in the United Kingdom

Sofia Collignon, Wolfgang Rüdig

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The use of political violence to attain political goals has long been a source of concern. Once thought to be exclusive of countries with high levels of general violence, recent evidence suggests that harassment and intimidation of political elites in the UK is more widespread than previously thought. Using data from the 2017 General Election candidate survey we find that four in every ten candidates experienced at least one type of harassment. Evidence suggests that women and young candidates are more likely to suffer from harassment and intimidation. We conclude by formulating an agenda for future research, focusing in particular on the perception of harassment and the effect of harassment on political careers.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1-8
Number of pages8
JournalThe Political Quarterly
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 May 2020

Keywords

  • Harassment, Elections, Candidates, VAWP

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