Monetary Integration and Accountability in Europe, 1988-1994.

When called upon to deliver judgment, citizens must believe that government is capable of affecting economic outcomes. Economic integration arguably reduces the power of governments to act independently in response to macroeconomic shocks. This paper seeks to determine whether institutional changes implemented by 12 European countries in the wake of monetary integration affected economic voting, and whether such changes were mediated by party messages. It employs statistical analyses across 12 European countries at two points in time. The results show that differences in economic voting were mediated by perceptions of EU integration; voters who believed in delegation at EU level weighed up economic issues to a lesser extent when casting their vote. In addition, such findings were to a large extent driven by partisan concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]