Participatory Attitudes and Electoral Behavior of Young People: The Cases of Turkey and Bulgaria

Abstract

This research explores and compares basic indicators regarding the participation of young people in political processes in Turkey and Bulgaria between 2011 and 2016. The data used are derived from the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems database. The results of the secondary processing of the quantitative data are comparatively analyzed. This paper shows that the youth of Turkey and Bulgaria had some similarities regarding their attitudes toward civic participation but also significant differences. The economic performances of governments shown to be a factor regarding support for ruling parties. However, in the case of Bulgaria, other factors played more significant roles in this respect during the examined period.

Keywords

• democracy
• participation
• economic voting
• turnout
• turkey
• bulgaria