The Chapel Hill Expert Survey provides expert estimates for party positions for European parties and has been conducted since 1999. It is run by Gary Marks, Marco Steenbergen, Ryan Bakker, Liesbet Hooge, Seth Jolly, Jonathan Polk, Jan Rovny and Milada Vachudova. The name of the survey derives from the university of the researchers that have founded the survey. Waves of the survey were conducted in 1999, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2017 and 2019. The survey provides researchers with expert ratings of political parties on key ideological positions as well as salience. The dataset can be accessed here. We present the dataset below, with tables and figures appearing in the panel on the right. While reading, please keep in mind the questions you see on the right and answer them once you reached the end. In the final panel, we provide a link to a platform with an interactive version of the dataset and additional tasks.

Table 1: General Tasks for the Dataset

Tasks
How well do the party families described in chapter 8 map onto the European ideological space?
Which party families appear to be more ideologically unified and which more dispersed?
What kind of relationship exists between left-right position and support for the EU and why?
Looking at the extreme parties in Europe, are they more defined by the cultural or the economic dimension?

Dataset Description

Overall Information

As an example, Table 2 shows a part of the 2017 dataset with some of the parties coded in Germany and Greece. The dataset in previous years also provided their seat share and vote share for the elections before. The parties were also coded into party families (more on this later) and have an indicator whether they are in Eastern or Western Europe. Please note that some of these questions might not be available for all waves of the survey.

Table 2: General Information in the CHES dataset

	country	eastwest	party	party_id
22	ge	1	CDU	301
23	ge	1	SPD	302
24	ge	1	FDP	303
25	ge	1	GRUNEN	304
26	ge	1	LINKE	306
27	ge	1	CSU	308
28	ge	1	AfD	310
29	ge	1	Piraten	311
30	ge	1	DieTier	312
31	gr	1	PASOK	401
32	gr	1	ND	402
33	gr	1	SYRIZA	403
34	gr	1	KKE	404
35	gr	1	XA	415
36	gr	1	EL	416

EU positions

Table 3 show mean estimates of the expert ratings for the EU positions for the German parties in the dataset. The question is worded: “overall orientation of the party leadership towards European integration in 2019”. A higher number (on the 1 to 7 scale) means a strong pro-European position. In Germany, the CDU, SPD and the Greens are strongly pro-EU, while the FDP and Linke are neutral. Meanwhile, the AfD is strongly critical towards the EU. Additionally, the variable eu_salience describes the importance of the EU for the party. Here, 0 is coded as “European Integration is of no importance, never mentioned”, while 10 represents “European Integration is the most important issue.”. The EU is the most important for the SPD and the AfD, albeit for different reasons as the former supports EU integration while the latter opposes it. The variable eu_dissent describes the degree of dissent among the party on EU policy. Here, the AfD and the Greens are particularly unified on EU policy, while other parties are more likely to dissent according to the experts. Finally, the dataset provides several variables to dive deeper into aspects of EU policy.

Table 3: EU positions in the CHES dataset

	party	eu_position	eu_salience	eu_dissent	eu_blur	eu_cohesion
22	CDU	6.285714	6.857143	2.636364	3.555556	5.250000
23	SPD	6.523809	6.857143	2.363636	2.777778	5.437500
24	FDP	5.761905	5.666666	3.727273	4.111111	3.823529
25	GRUNEN	6.761905	7.333334	1.454546	1.888889	5.800000
26	LINKE	4.714286	4.850000	5.090909	4.666666	5.200000
27	CSU	5.684210	6.600000	3.636364	4.000000	4.941176
28	AfD	1.904762	6.714286	2.909091	3.000000	3.000000

Ideological positions

Table 4 shows the major ideological positions included in the dataset. The variable “lrgen” provides an overall ideological position of the party on a left-right dimension. The German parties are ordered as expected: the Left and Greens are on the ideological left, the SPD, CDU and FDP in the centre and the AfD on the far right. However, the overall left-right scale might hide more specific ideological differences between parties. Two ideological scales that are included in the dataset are the economical as well as the cultural left-right scale. The economic-related scale is called “lrecon” and it ranges from 0 (“Extreme left”) to 10 (“Extreme right”). In Germany we can see that the AfD is much less extreme relative to the other parties on economic issues, while the Left is now clearly differentiated from the Greens. The dataset also provides measures of how clear the economic position is (lrecon_clear) and how salient that area is for the party (lrecon_salience). Additionally, the dataset provides a scale for cultural ideology called “galtan”. This scale ranges from 0 (“Libertarian/Postmaterialist” or GAL) to 10 (“Traditional/Authoritarian” or TAN). These two scales illustrate te special position of the FDP in the German party system, as the FDP is on the left and positioned close to the SPD, Left and Greens on the GALTAN scale, but far away from them on the economic scale.

Table 4: Ideological positions in the CHES dataset

	party	lrgen	lrecon	galtan
22	CDU	5.857143	5.904762	5.857143
23	SPD	3.619048	3.714286	3.380952
24	FDP	6.428571	7.904762	3.428571
25	GRUNEN	3.238095	3.809524	1.095238
26	LINKE	1.428572	1.285714	2.809524
27	CSU	7.190476	6.380952	7.285714
28	AfD	9.238095	7.000000	9.523809

Additional Information

Finally, the CHES dataset provides additional, more specific policy questions, for example on multiculturalism, immigration and populism, an example of which is shown in Table 5. These positions differ in each wave of the survey, but provide a very important datasource for the study of parties in Europe.

Table 5: Specific policy positions in the CHES dataset

	party	immigrate_policy	multiculturalism	redistribution	people_vs_elite
22	CDU	6.00	7.050000	5.9473686	1.700000
23	SPD	4.15	4.250000	3.0526316	2.450000
24	FDP	5.95	5.764706	8.5789471	2.350000
25	GRUNEN	1.70	1.900000	3.4210527	4.900000
26	LINKE	2.70	2.764706	0.8947368	4.350000
27	CSU	7.70	8.450000	6.3157897	2.842105
28	AfD	9.90	9.950000	6.0000000	8.315789

Country Coverage of the Chapel Hill Expert Survey

Figure 1 shows the countries included in each iteration of the dataset. Some countries (such as Germany and Spain) have been included in all iterations of the dataset. Others have been added over time, such as countries that joined the EU at a later date, as well as non-EU countries Turkey, Norway and Switzerland. The survey in 2017 was run as a “flash survey”, therefore not covering all countries. The results from 1999 to 2014 are available as a trend file, facilitating the analysis of paty positions over time. The standard data format is a stata (or csv) file that shows the aggregated means for each party. The team also provides an expert-level dataset that shows each expert’s individual coding (for example in order to identify parties on which the experts disagreed).

Figure 1: Countries Included in the CHES Dataset

The parties in the CHES dataset

Figure 2 shows all parties in the CHES dataset in 2017. On the x-axis, we plotted their economic position (called lrecon in the CHES dataset), ranging from 0 (extreme left) to 10 (extreme right). Parties on the left campaign for government involvement in the economy and regulation, often to better fund the welfare state. Parties on the right campaign for less government involvement, a more free market oriented economic policy and a leaner welfare state. On the y-axis, we plotted the “galtan” dimension of the CHES dataset, representing the cultural ideological dimension. Again, a value of 0 represents the extreme left, while a value of 10 represents the extreme right. Parties on the left are called “libertarian” or “postmaterialist” and campaign on issues such as personal freedoms, civil rights and democratic participation. Parties on the right are described as “traditional” or “authoritarian” and campaign on social order, upholding traditions and morals.

We can also see that while there seem to be more parties along the diagonal axis (being either on the left in both economic and cultural terms), there are a number of parties located in the opposite quadrants, namely parties that are economically right, but culturally left, or vice versa. We can also see that there is considerable overlap between the party families. We will take a closer look at these families in subsequent plots. According to the codebook of the CHES dataset, “family attribution is based primarily on Derksen classification (now incorporated in Wikipedia), triangulated by a) membership or affiliation with EP party families b) Parlgov classifications and c) self-identification”. The CHES team also points out that it “endeavor[s] to carefully classify all parties; however, some parties are easier to categorize than others. For instance, some parties fit into two or more categories (e.g., Lega Nord can be classified as Radical Right and Regionalist). CHES users are advised to review family codings to ensure they match their own research goals.” One additional way to classify parties is using the Europeas Parliament group they joined.

Figure 2: Overview of Parties in the Dataset

Relationship between Left-Right Ideology and EU Positions

Figure 3 shows the parties in the 2017 dataset plotted according to their overall left-right position as well as their position on European integration. The form of the distribution follows (with some exceptions) the shape of an inverted U: Many parties on the extreme left and right are much less supportive of the European Union than those in the centre. However, we should note that there are many parties especially on the left in the socialist and green party families that support EU integration. The Christian Democratic and conservative party family seems to be strongly divided, with parties such as Fidesz and the UK Conservatives being opposed to EU integration while parties such as the Partido Popular in Spain and the Moderates in Sweden supporting EU integration.

Figure 3: Ideology and EU Position

Conservative Parties

Figure 4 shows the family of conservative parties, which have played an important role in European politics over the last 100 years. Conservative Parties arose in the historic era of the industrial revolution and the class cleavage it brought up. Conservative parties traditionally represented capital owners and business. They are often positioned on the political right. Consequently, their origin lies in an economic cleavage and not in a cultural one. Consequently, we can find some conservative parties on that show a right position on the economic sclae, but a centrist position on the cultural dimension. Meanwhile, there are also some examples of conservative parties that have adopted a centrist position on economic issues (such as Fidesz in Hungary).

Figure 4 also shows the conservative parties from the four countries that chapter 8 focuses on: The Conservative Party in the United Kingdom, the Partido Popular in Spain and the Confederation Liberty and Independence in Poland.

Figure 4: Conservative Parties

Christian-Democratic and Confessional Parties

Figure 5 shows the Christian-Democratic parties in Europe in 2017, including the Christian Dmeocratic Union, the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (both Germany) and the Civic Platform (Poland) as examples from chapter 8. While these parties are explicitly formed around the church-state cleavage, they occupy a similar party space as the conservative party in terms of ideology. Christian-Democratic parties tend to be both economically and culturally on the right, but they often root their programmatic stances more explicitly in religion than conservative parties. While their traditional voting groups have been religious, they have taken on the role of the major centre-right party in many countries, most notably Germany in which the CDU/CSU has held power since 2005.

Figure 5: Christian-Democratic and Confessional Parties

Liberal Parties

Figure 6 shows the liberal party family. Liberal parties predominantly occupy the bottom right quadrant of the graph, holding right-wing economic (limited state involvement in the economy, limited welfare states), but left-wing cultural views (protection of civil rights and freedoms). These parties have played an important role in European politics, partly due to their special position in the party space that makes them suitable coalition partners for parties on both the left and right. In Spain, the Citizens (C’s) have played an important role in the coalition negotiations in the late 2010s. The German FDP has been a coalition partner for both CDU and SPD in German history, but brought down coalition negotiations between the CDU and Greens after the 2017 election. The Liberal Democrats in the UK have been in coalition with the COnservatives, but have been major critics of the Conservative party during the Brexit process. Modern (Nowoczesna) is a Polish party formed in the 2010s that combine their liberal position with a pro-European platform. However, the liberal party family spreads across the political centre, with some liberal parties adopting left-wing economic positions.

Figure 6: Liberal Parties

Socialist Parties

Figure 7 shows the socialist party family. Similar to the liberal party family, socialist parties originate in the class cleavage, but represent the interest of the working class. Consequently, socialist parties occupy the left of the economic scale, stressing redistribution and a strong welfare state. Additionally, many socialist parties run on culturally left platforms. Figure 7 also shows the major socialist parties that make up the left in the UK (Labour), Germany (Social Democratic Party) and Spain (Spanish Socialist Worker’s Party). While the majority of socialist parties occupy the lower-left quadrant of the party space shown in Figure 7, some parties classified as socialist also hold more right-wing economic or cultural positions.

Figure 7: Socialist Parties

Radical Parties

Figure 8 shows both radical left and right parties. While radical left parties are mainly defined by an economic left position with a strong emphasis on redistribution and involvement of the state in the economy, radical right parties are predominantly defined by a right-wing position on the cultural dimension, stressing traditional values and upholding the social order. Radical right parties have gained a lot of support in recent years, with some, such as the Law and Justice Party in Poland consistently winning elections. Meanwhile, the UK Independence Party and later the Brexit party was instrumental in Britain’s exit from the EU and the Alternative for Germany has been a major challenge to the German party system as has Vox in Spain. Meanwhile, radical left parties include several established communist and socialist parties such as the United Left in Spain and the Left in Germany, as well as new parties such as Razem in Poland. As we saw in Figure 8.1, many of these parties also do not support European integration, albeit for different reasons: While radical right parties oppose migration and aim to defend national sovereignty, many radical left parties reject the EU as a neoliberal project.

Figure 8: Radical Parties

Green, Regionalist and Agrarian Parties

Finally, Figure 9 shows the green, regionalist and agrarian party families. Green parties occupy a similar ideological space as socialist parties, with left-wing positions on both the cultural as well as the economic dimension. However, their platforms play specifically on the environmental issue, with the Green party in Germany ascending to one of the largest parties in German politics. Meanwhile, agrarian parties are specifically representing rural interests. However, these partie splay a diminished role in European politics today. Finally, regionalist parties originate in the centre-periphery cleavage and stress the representation of regional interests against national parties. These parties are especially strong in the UK (with SNP and Plaid Cymru winning seats in the House of Commons) and Spain (with the Catalan and Basque regional parties supporting many minority governments in previous decades).

Figure 9: Other Parties