Immigrants represent a growing share of the electorate in many democracies. Their political participation is crucial for the quality of democracy and representation, yet they vote to a lesser extent than native-born citizens. In this research, we examine voter turnout among immigrants in Canada, a particularly relevant case given the high share of its population that is born abroad and its immigration politics. We first show that the apparent small turnout gap between immigrants and native-born Canadians hides important heterogeneity among immigrants. Specifically, the size of the gap is heavily a function of the number of years spent in the country and is also linked to the regime type of newcomers' country of origin. That said, conventional models of voter turnout make sense of most of the differences in turnout rates between natives and immigrants, with age having the greatest explanatory power. We discuss the implications of our findings for electoral participation and immigration politics.
Legislatures worldwide are increasingly developing artificial intelligence (AI) tools, yet political scientists still lack a shared framework for systematically comparing them. This article proposes a 'Dual-Layer Model' for analysing parliamentary AI tools, distinguishing between what these tools do and the actors involved in their use, that is, where inputs originate and where outputs are directed. Building on this framework, we develop a classification that captures how AI tools support different institutional functions within parliament, based on configurations of information flow between actors. This approach shifts attention from technical functions to how AI-generated outputs are embedded in relationships among parliamentary actors and between parliament and the public and provides a basis for studying the institutional consequences of AI adoption, the distribution of informational resources and capacities, and the strategic choices guiding the development of specific tools. Drawing on evidence from eleven parliamentary chambers, we show that the adoption of AI tools is currently shaped by an efficiency-led logic. Most tools are used to support the work of parliamentary staff and offices, consistent with earlier patterns of internet diffusion in parliaments, while tools used by legislators or incorporating citizen input remain comparatively limited. At the same time, patterns of adoption do not converge towards a common portfolio of AI tools across legislatures.
This study tests the theatricalization hypothesis in the Spanish Parliament, defined as the difference between the rhetoric employed by Members of Parliament in frontstage (Plenary Sessions) and backstage (Legislative Committees) settings. Drawing on a balanced random sample from a corpus of over 200,000 speeches delivered between 1996 and 2023, we apply natural language processing tools to compute a Negative Sentiment Index and an Anger Index. Results statistically demonstrate an increase in theatricalization from 2017 onward, with large effect sizes. This effect is moderated by party affiliation and by the party's power position (government or opposition).
This article extends the proportionality regularity identified in Gamson's Law to examine how political resources are allocated within an opposition coalition. Using Australia's Liberal-National coalition, it examines whether shadow ministries and participation in Question Time-key resources for opposition parties-are allocated proportionally to each party's parliamentary strength. Drawing on a new dataset covering all periods of Coalition opposition from 1983 to 2025, it analyses the distribution of shadow ministerial posts, as well as the distribution of parliamentary questions. The results show a strong proportional distribution of these resources between coalition partners, notwithstanding that the largest opposition party is a 'dictator' as defined by Gamson. These findings contribute to research on coalitions, oppositions, and Australian party dynamics, offering new insights into how power-sharing arrangements operate outside government. It also raises important questions about the conditions that Gamson suggested underpinned his theory.
Distinct leadership styles are expected from women legislators, and research suggests that this is driven by women's newcomer and minority-status in politics. Do women's styles differ from men's in gender-balanced contexts? This paper investigates informal norms on a relatively understudied part of legislators' role: citizen engagement, using 33 interviews with women and men Swedish MPs. The findings suggest that women MPs experience high expectations on their availability to listen to citizens' personal problems, while men more easily disregard citizens' demands on their time and engagement. Compared to men, women also prioritize citizens outside their own electoral district more. This enforces hidden inequalities which continue to shape the gendered conditions for leadership in numerically gender balanced institutions.
