This dissertation consists of six articles which analyze the relationship between voters, candidates and parties in modern parliamentary systems. The first three articles analyze the preferences of voters for candidates in open-list PR systems. In particular, these articles focus on the question of how information shortcuts influence the electoral success of candidates. Three shortcuts are analyzed: ballot position effects, residence effects and gender effects. The second part of the thesis analyzes the positions of candidates and parties in Germany and the Czech Republic. Taking advantage of recent developments in the field of political methodology, it is analyzed where parties, legislators and candidates are located in a low-dimensional policy space. In this regard, the thesis discusses the interpretation of the terms “left” and “right” by political actors and highlights how the interpretation of these terms depends on the context in which they are used.

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