The aim of this paper is to explain vote choice in the2009 and 2013 German Federal Elections and its impact on the quality of representation. Both elections took place against the backdrop of the crisis: in 2009 it was framed as a domestic issue, whereas four years later the crisis had a European dimension. Relying on GLES data we assess two arguments: First, we explain the impact of individual fear of the looming crisis on the quality of representation. We demonstrate that individuals focusing on the financial crisis opt for valence type representation while individuals without fear of the crisis opt for more ideological representation. Second, we compare the salience of the EU issue as a core issue of the Eurocrisis in both elections, and find that the impact of EU issue voting increased. The findings have implications for our understanding of representation in Europe in current times.
