Daniel Sandvej Eriksen

Can political parties set an agenda, and if so, how? This is a fundamental yet unanswered question within agenda-setting literature, which constitutes a cornerstone in political science research. The question has far-reaching implications because it tells a great deal about the extent to which underlying conflicts in society can be channeled into political discussions via the strategic actions of political parties. In response, this dissertation develops The Issue Initiation Model. The model theorizes that the concerted efforts of political parties and their MPs to initiate and elevate their agenda can lead other important actors to redirect their attention to it. These arguments are tested on a unique dataset comprising more than 5.5 million tweets by political parties and MPs, 750,000 news articles, and over 400,000 written parliamentary questions during the years 2011–2022 in Denmark and 2015–2022 in the UK. Based on this, the dissertation yields several important insights. First, it reveals that politicians’ social media posts are an integral aspect of contemporary party competition and agenda-setting. Second, it demonstrates that initiation and elevation are distinct yet interrelated types of behavior by political parties and their politicians. Third, the dissertation shows how the attempts by parties and their politicians to initiate and elevate an agenda can lead political competitors and the news media to redirect their attention towards it. As a whole, the dissertation demonstrates that even though political parties are constantly bombarded with new information, they nonetheless retain substantial agency in strategically setting an agenda.

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