This book investigates the ideological conditions inducing political actors to highlight
corruption issues through valence campaigns. Using case studies and comparative analyses of
party programmes legislatives speeches and social media data the author demonstrates that the
more parties and or candidates present a similar policy programme the more they rely on
valence campaigns. In other words as the ideologies of parties have become increasingly
similar over recent decades the content of political competition has substantially shifted
from policy to non-policy factors such as corruption issues. These dynamics and the
ideological considerations underpinning them also provide a novel perspective on recent
phenomena in contemporary democracies such as the growth of negative campaigning as well as
populist strategies based on anti-elite rhetoric. The book will appeal to students and scholars
interested in political corruption valence politics populism and electoral campaigning.
