Goodbye Lenin: The Electoral Effects of De-Sovietization in Ukraine

• In Event: Poster Session: Comparative Politics in Developing Countries I

Abstract

How does the authoritarian past shape politics after the transition to democracy? We study this question by examining the electoral effects of the ‘de-Sovietization’ in Ukraine. During a short period of time, thousands of Soviet toponyms were replaced and most of the monuments to Lenin and other Soviet figures were removed from the public spaces across the country. Using differences-in-differences design, we find evidence that removals of the Lenin’s monuments, on average, increased votes for the parties sympathetic to the past Soviet regime, most likely by mobilizing the supporters of those parties to turnout. This finding indicates that even when normatively justified, the attempts to break up with the authoritarian past by destroying its symbols can carry short-term electoral costs.

Authors

• Anastasiia Vlasenko

• Arturas Rozenas, New York University