Place-Based Imagery and Voter Evaluations: Experimental Evidence on the Politics of Place

Abstract

Prior research has shown that social identities defined by an attachment to place (i.e., “place-based” identities) are influential in shaping how citizens understand and think about political topics. Moreover, prior research has also argued that candidates sometimes use “place-based appeals” in order to win support among the electorate, and that such appeals are seemingly widespread. While past research has provided a rich understanding of what place-based identity and place-based appeals are, there is a large gap in what we know about the causal effects of such appeals. In this study, we address this gap by testing experimentally the effects of place-based appeals on voters’ evaluation of candidate likeability and ability to understand their constituents, across the broader American patchwork. Using a set of modified campaign mailer advertisements, we alter whether respondents see an ad that uses rural or urban imagery when introducing a candidate. Our results indicate that, consistent with existing theory, place-based appeals are impactful in shaping political evaluations among rural voters, but do not appear as relevant for urban voters. Overall, we argue that place—or symbolically charged geographical sites—is a useful, widespread, and potentially powerful political heuristic.