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Physical Memories of the Past and Support for the Far-Right: Evidence from Inter-War Denmark

Author

Listed:
  • Lasse Aaskoven

    (University of Southern Denmark)

  • Christian Vedel

    (University of Southern Denmark)

Abstract

A growing literature concerns the role of symbolic politics, including how political parties benefit electorally from politicizing the past, a strategy which should be more effective in localities with physical memories of the past. We test this argument by studying the effect of the local concentration of pre-Christian monuments on electoral support for the Danish Nazi Party -- a far-right party who relied heavily on the symbols of Denmark's pre-Christian past in its propaganda -- in Danish parliamentary elections 1935-1943. In contrast to the proposed theoretical argument, we find no evidence that Danish localities with a greater concentration of pre-Christian monuments saw greater electoral support for the Danish Nazi Party. These findings hint at the limits of symbolic politics for electoral support for the far-right and suggest that investigating the scope conditions for the political effects of physical memories of the past may be a fruitful avenue for future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Lasse Aaskoven & Christian Vedel, 2026. "Physical Memories of the Past and Support for the Far-Right: Evidence from Inter-War Denmark," Working Papers 0295, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    • Handle: RePEc:hes:wpaper:0295
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Christian Ochsner & Felix Roesel, 2024. "Activated History: The Case of the Turkish Sieges of Vienna," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 16(3), pages 76-112, July.
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    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • N44 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation - - - Europe: 1913-

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