Refugee´s political participation in times of restrictive migration policies

Refugees tend to participate less than natives in the elections and the political life of host-societies. Explaining this difference, research has pointed to the impact of less accessible citizenships and insecure settlement as factors that reduce the ability to participate, lowering a sense of belonging. Yet, globally, there has been a restrictive trend in the migration policy paradigm in which temporary permits have become the new norm. In Sweden, temporary permits were swiftly introduced in the abandonment of an inclusive approach to migration with permanent residence in July 2016.

Today, there is a lack of knowledge of how the change in Swedish migration policy affected political participation and perceived political inclusion among refugees. Addressing this knowledge gap, we use a study design that identifies two groups of refugees – 10,000 with temporary permits and 10,000 with permanent permits - granted residence in Sweden close to the implementation of the law. Our setup and data allow causal- and temporal analyses of political participation and individual perceptions about possibilities to participate in the democratic system in Sweden. We complement this data with in-depth interviews with stakeholders. We use a range of analytical methods in the form of both quantitative and qualitative methods, including quasi-experimental designs and thematic analyses.

Researchers

Henrik Andersson

Emma Holmqvist

Kristoffer Jutvik