98-08-072
Abstention Causes Bifurcations in Two-Party Voting Dynamics
Bärbel M. R. Stadler
In a recent dynamical systems model of platform adaptation in
spatial voting models, Miller and Stadler showed that, assuming
concave voter utility functions and complete participation, there is a
globally stable equilibrium located at the mean voter position. Here
we show that abstention depending on the distances between voters and
platforms may lead to bifurcations rendering the mean voter
equilibrium unstable. We find up to seven equilibria, up to four of
which are local attractors for the platform dynamics.
keywords:
Spatial Voting, Adaptive Platform Dynamics, Abstention, Bifurcations
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