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AbstractThere is extensive evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic has mostly affected the less well-off in society, boosting economic inequality. In contrast, little is known about how much such rising economic disparities affected the involvement of individuals in politics, thereby enhancing political inequality. Extending the research on political inequality to a key and somewhat neglected dimension of citizens' involvement with politics - political engagement - this article claims that the COVID-19 depressed engagement and promoted political inequality. The analysis relies on a comparative European approach and on data before and after the emergence of the pandemic. Besides generally finding an overall socioeconomic gap with regard to political engagement, results also suggest that the pandemic somewhat lessened engagement, increasing the gap between the more and less socioeconomically advantaged. Generally, this is not strictly due to a tendency to decrease engagement among the latter but also to increase engagement among the former.

Abstract
Despite extensive research on the 'politics matter' hypothesis, the findings achieved so far remain ambiguous. Inspired by that hypothesis, this research focuses on electoral promises, a chief but as yet untested indicator. It examines whether government party colour explains the adoption of an ideologically committed policy agenda in electoral manifestos. To answer this goal the research looks at the left–right placement of manifesto pledges of the Portuguese governing parties between 1995 and 2019. The results indicate that partisanship significantly explains the executive's party agenda-setting and that this relationship prevails over time. Findings also suggest that the partisan effect is mediated by issue salience.

Abstract
Why do parties pay more attention to some policy issues than to others? To what extent does policy attention
conveyed by the media, public opinion, and parliament explain party agenda-setting? And, more specifically, to what extent does
the media agenda influence other agenda effects? This paper addresses these questions in an original manner by analyzing the
influence of these three agendas – media, public opinion, and parliament – in party manifesto elaboration. The analysis relies on
an extensive database of the Portuguese Policy Agendas Project that includes media attention, voter preferences, parliamentary
questions and pledges in manifestos, between 1995 and 2015. Our findings show that the media agenda is the most influential in
party manifesto elaboration, and that the other agendas have a stronger effect when the media also give attention to the issue.
This depends, however, on the political party being in cabinet or in opposition, as well as on the economic context. These
findings have important implications for party competition literature.

Empirical research has found that, despite citizens' perceptions to the contrary, political parties tend to deliver on their campaign promises. What are the reasons for this mismatch between perceptions and performance? Research to date has paid insufficient attention to the reasons for such a mismatch, neglecting the effects of political predispositions such as party identification and sympathy for the government. This article argues that it is such political predispositions that cause biased perceptions of pledge fulfilment. Bias towards perceiving pledges as unfulfilled is expected to be higher for voters whose political predispositions are more unfavourable to government. The argument is supported by data on Portuguese voters and party manifestos in the 2011 election, contributing to better understanding of the mechanisms of political accountability.

The article addresses the crucial but still relatively understudied issue of political perceptions, specifically the perceptions of members of parliament (MPs) regarding the positioning of voters on the left-right spectrum, and the accuracy thereof. It focuses on the Portuguese case, which differs from others studied to date in terms of the links between MPs and voters (in contrast to prior research, Portuguese voters do not vote for an MP candidate but for a party list; the representation process is mediated by political parties). The article begins by characterizing Portuguese MP perceptions of voters' left-right positions, and then explores the reasons for MPs' perceptual accuracy. The findings show that MP perceptions are shaped by wishful thinking, reiterating previous research, and that party integration is an important new factor explaining perceptual accuracy. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Ltd., copyright holder.]

Abstract
Over the last decades, a number of empirical studies have approached representation essentially on the basis of descriptive analyses of political or ideological deputy-voter congruence. Only a few studies have attempted to explain why parties are more or less correspondent to their electorates and none has adopted a comprehensive theoretical approach to that explanation. Trying to respond to this lacuna, this article begins by assessing the levels of policy preferences among Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and their voters using a set of eight policy issues (characterizing the left-right and libertarian-authoritarian dimensions), and then explores what may explain policy congruence by testing models working at the individual, party and party system levels. Three regression models are run corresponding to each of these levels. Each model regards the eight policy issues under study. The study looks at the political parties of the 27 countries of the European Union (EU) which ran in the 2009 European Parliament elections. The findings reveal that party congruence is generally moderate (no significant differences seem to emerge between left-right and libertarian-authoritarian issues) and that the individual model (namely voters' education and intra-party polarization) and party-level model (MEPs' and voters' left-right and libertarian-authoritarian attitudes within parties) are those which best explain party policy congruence.

WOS:000314477100003 (Nº de Acesso Web of Science) ; Empirical studies on representation have been based mainly on the descriptive analysis of levels of political or ideological congruence between MPs and voters. Very few studies focus on explaining congruence, and those that have done so do not explore all the explanatory dimensions. This article contributes to filling this gap by testing whether three theoretical models can explain left–right congruence among European parties. These models explore causality at the micro or individual level (the characteristics of voters and MPs), the meso level (party characteristics), and the macro or system level (party system and institutional characteristics). Based on data from the PIREDEU project, the study examines the party systems of the 27 countries of the European Union with reference to the 2009 European Parliament elections. The findings reveal that MP–voter congruence is best explained at the party level and by key MP candidate characteristics.

Empirical studies on representation have been based mainly on the descriptive analysis of levels of political or ideological congruence between MPs and voters. Very few studies focus on explaining congruence, and those that have done so do not explore all the explanatory dimensions. This article contributes to filling this gap by testing whether three theoretical models can explain left-right congruence among European parties. These models explore causality at the micro or individual level (the characteristics of voters and MPs), the meso level (party characteristics), and the macro or system level (party system and institutional characteristics). Based on data from the PIREDEU project, the study examines the party systems of the 27 countries of the European Union with reference to the 2009 European Parliament elections. The findings reveal that MP-voter congruence is best explained at the party level and by key MP candidate characteristics. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Inc., copyright holder.]

Empirical studies on representation have been based mainly on the descriptive analysis of levels of political or ideological congruence between MPs and voters. Very few studies focus on explaining congruence, and those that have done so do not explore all the explanatory dimensions. This article contributes to filling this gap by testing whether three theoretical models can explain left–right congruence among European parties. These models explore causality at the micro or individual level (the characteristics of voters and MPs), the meso level (party characteristics), and the macro or system level (party system and institutional characteristics). Based on data from the PIREDEU project, the study examines the party systems of the 27 countries of the European Union with reference to the 2009 European Parliament elections. The findings reveal that MP–voter congruence is best explained at the party level and by key MP candidate characteristics.

The article addresses the crucial but still relatively understudied issue of political perceptions, specifically the perceptions of members of parliament (MPs) regarding the positioning of voters on the left–right spectrum, and the accuracy thereof. It focuses on the Portuguese case, which differs from others studied to date in terms of the links between MPs and voters (in contrast to prior research, Portuguese voters do not vote for an MP candidate but for a party list; the representation process is mediated by political parties). The article begins by characterizing Portuguese MP perceptions of voters' left–right positions, and then explores the reasons for MPs' perceptual accuracy. The findings show that MP perceptions are shaped by wishful thinking, reiterating previous research, and that party integration is an important new factor explaining perceptual accuracy.

WOS:000336233200009 (Nº de Acesso Web of Science) ; The article addresses the crucial but still relatively understudied issue of political perceptions, specifically the perceptions of members of parliament (MPs) regarding the positioning of voters on the left–right spectrum, and the accuracy thereof. It focuses on the Portuguese case, which differs from others studied to date in terms of the links between MPs and voters (in contrast to prior research, Portuguese voters do not vote for an MP candidate but for a party list; the representation process is mediated by political parties). The article begins by characterizing Portuguese MP perceptions of voters' left–right positions, and then explores the reasons for MPs' perceptual accuracy. The findings show that MP perceptions are shaped by wishful thinking, reiterating previous research, and that party integration is an important new factor explaining perceptual accuracy.