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This article examines the relationship between green transition policies and economic inequality in shaping democratic legitimacy in Europe and OECD countries.

June 10, 2026Open Access

Green Transition, Economic Inequality, and Democracy: A Comparative Analysis of Political Trust and Democratic Satisfaction in European and Oecd Countries

Key Points

This article examines the relationship between green transition policies and economic inequality in shaping democratic legitimacy in Europe and OECD countries.
Analyzed a comparative panel of European and OECD countries.
Used fixed-effects panel regressions and cross-sectional models to assess interactions between green policies and inequality.
Conducted regime-type comparisons and case studies of Germany, Poland, Lithuania, and Turkey.
Stronger green transition performance correlates with higher democratic satisfaction mainly in low-inequality contexts.
Energy poverty exacerbates political backlash when transition costs affect vulnerable households.
Effective decarbonization requires integrating welfare policies and social protections to sustain democratic support.

Abstract

This article investigates how the intensity of green transition policies interacts with economic inequality to shape democratic legitimacy. Drawing on a comparative panel of European and OECD countries, it links measures of environmental policy stringency, decarbonization progress and energy affordability with distributional indicators (income inequality and energy poverty) and survey-based outcomes (political trust and satisfaction with democracy). The analysis combines cross-sectional models, fixed-effects panel regressions and interaction tests to assess whether “just transition” conditions moderate citizens’ acceptance of climate policy. Results suggest that stronger green transition performance is not uniformly associated with higher trust or democratic satisfaction: positive associations emerge mainly where inequality is lower and compensatory welfare and price-shielding policies limit perceived unfairness. Where transition costs concentrate on vulnerable households and regions, energy poverty rises and legitimacy risks increase, creating political space for backlash and populist framing. Regime-type comparisons and short case illustrations (Germany, Poland, Lithuania and Turkey) highlight that institutional capacity and distributive policy design condition these dynamics. The study contributes a framework that integrates climate policy, inequality and democratic attitudes and underscores that effective decarbonization requires social protection, participatory governance and targeted compensation to maintain democratic support. It identifies energy poverty as a central mediating mechanism here.

Green Transition, Economic Inequality, and Democracy: A Comparative Analysis of Political Trust and Democratic Satisfaction in European and Oecd Countries

Key Points

Abstract

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