In Print: None of the Above
Publication Title
None of the Above: Protesting Voting in Latin American Democracies
Author
Publisher
University of Michigan Press
Publication Date
2024
About the Book (from the publisher)
Around the world each year, millions of citizens turn out to vote but leave their ballots empty or spoil them. Increasingly, campaigns have emerged that promote “invalid” votes like these. Why do citizens choose to cast blank and spoiled votes? And how do campaigns mobilizing the invalid vote influence this decision? None of the Above answers these questions using evidence from presidential and gubernatorial elections in eighteen Latin American democracies. Author Mollie J. Cohen draws on a broad range of methods and sources, incorporating data from electoral management bodies, nationally representative surveys, survey experiments, focus groups, semi-structured interviews, and news sources.
Contrary to received wisdom, this book shows that most citizens cast blank or spoiled votes in presidential elections on purpose. By participating in invalid vote campaigns, citizens can voice their concerns about low-quality candidates while also expressing a preference for high-quality democracy. Campaigns promoting blank and spoiled votes come about more often, and succeed at higher rates, when incumbent politicians undermine the quality of elections. Surprisingly, invalid vote campaigns can shore up the quality of democracy in the short term. None of the Above shows that swings in blank and spoiled vote rates can serve as a warning about the trajectory of a country’s democracy.
About the Author
Mollie Cohen is an assistant professor of political science and faculty member in the Cornerstone Integrated Liberal Arts program. Previously, she was an assistant professor of International Affairs at the University of Georgia and a research fellow at the LAPOP Lab. She received her Ph.D. in political science from Vanderbilt University.
Cohen studies public opinion and voting behavior, especially in Latin America. Her forthcoming book, None of the Above: Protest Voting in Latin American Democracies (University of Michigan Press, 2024), examines how democratic backsliding fuels the emergence and success of campaigns promoting blank or spoiled votes. Her research has been published at the American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, Political Analysis, Political Behavior, and Public Opinion Quarterly, among other outlets.