Studies show that globalisation creates political potentials that can transform
electoral competition in Western societies. The specific process of how these
potentials become effective is not completely understood. It is argued in the article
that attention-grabbing events can trigger the transformation of electoral
competition as they force actors to take clear positions and thereby allow citizens
to align their partisan preferences and policy attitudes. The article analyses the
case of German parties’ reaction to the arrival of large numbers of refugees at
Europe’s borders in 2015/16. Using panel data that bracket this event, it is shown
how German citizens responded to party behaviour by changing partisan preferences
on the basis of prior immigration attitudes. The so-called refugee crisis may
thus have been a critical juncture transforming party competition in Germany. As
such, the crisis represents a striking example of how events may focus attention
on a new policy dimension and catalyse the evolution of newcleavages.
