Why do people locate themselves on the centre? Despite being the most numerous position of the left-right axis and its important role in party competition, centrist location is still a mystery. This paper groups together and investigates the hypotheses behind this crucial position and reveals the motives of centrist self-location in 21 European countries. The empirical analysis reveals a novel insight of importance to ideological self-placement: centrist self-placement is mainly a product of individuals’ voting patterns and their lack of political sophistication. Results also show that the importance of these factors varies across countries. Findings in this article have implications for our understanding of the left-right axis and its role in party competition.
