Intra‐party competition under preferential list systems: the case of Finland

Abstract

In an election for the Eduskunta, Finland's Parliament, voters are asked to select a particular candidate from a party list. This article analyses the intra‐party choice of candidates on the occasion of Finland's 1999 election. It seeks to provide quantitative estimates of intra‐party competition by using three measurements: position effect, the Gini index of inequality and intra‐partisan defeats. The study shows that whether a candidate's name comes first, middle or last on a party list has an effect on voting choice in Finland. It also suggests that Finnish voters tend to disperse their preferences widely among a party's candidates, with the result that a large proportion of incumbents are defeated by newcomer candidates.