Partis et systèmes politiques: interactions et fonctions

1969 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georges Lavau

It is no longer in style to develop typologies of political regimes based on their party systems. Systematic studies today are interested in parties only in terms of their role in the functioning of the political system as a whole. No doubt it is an insoluble problem to determine whether parties and the party system are variables which are independent or dependent in relation to the political system. Besides, without being able to rule out a relationship of interdependence, the two terms display a certain degree of independence and are not in a relationship of co-variance. Thus it is that the political system is shaped to a certain extent by the opposition of the parties to the system, the parties in turn having been conditioned by three other kinds of forces.The problem of specifying the functions of parties remains a central one, even though there is much confusion in the use of the language of functionalism. It is therefore important to clarify the notion of the functions of political parties. If one defines the political system as a set of processes and mechanisms which bring about the convergence or neutralization of irresistible social pluralisms without exploding the balance of these pluralist forces, then one can distinguish three functional requirements: (1) the legitimation-stabilization function; (2) the tribunician function (integration or neutralization of centrifugal forces); (3) the function of providing governmental alternatives.Where there is interaction between parties and the political system, one can discern an aspect of non-dependence between the two terms. In the first place, the parties (and not only the anti-system or revolutionary parties) do not develop solely in accordance with their relationship to the political system. Secondly, the system too has a certain degree of self-determination, even when confronted with anti-system parties.

1967 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 526-535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerard F. Rutan

Almost thirty years ago Nicholas Mansergh concluded that the political parties in Northern Ireland did not fulfill the needs of the political system: that (to put his statement in more contemporary terms) the input functions, particularly that of political socialization, were enfeebled to the extent that one party constituted a permanent government while the other became an equally permanent opposition. What is more, underlying the party system and within the political society itself there existed no consensus on fundamentals: “There is no residue of political beliefs—as in Great Britain and the Free State—acceptable to both parties.”


Author(s):  
N. G. ROGOZHINA

On the threshold of elections designed to be held in February 2019,  the first after the military junta seized power in 2014, it is important  to define the role of parties in the political process of Thailand, which  as other developing countries of Asia, faces  challenges in democratic state building. The contemporary political  history of kingdom represents the confrontation of two tendencies –  authoritarianism and democracy what has a reverse impact on  political parties, their character, structure and ability to represent  interests of the society as a whole. The author analyses the process  of party evolution in the historical retrospective in the context of  transformation of political system – from bureaucratic to  semidemocratic subjected to economic modernization and changes in  socio structure of society where traditional form of organization patron-client is persisted. The author defines three  stages of evolution of party system in Thailand The first is  characterized by the full control of civil-military bureaucracy over  parties. The second stage is closely related to the formation of provincial political clientele groups. The third stage marks the  evolvement of party of “power” with the implication for  strengthening the parliamentary democracy in the beginning of XXI  century. And as the result of it – to the destabilization of political  system, based on the relative balance of power between two main  political forces – bureaucracy and army interested in reservation of authoritarian government, and bourgeoisie supporting the  liberalization of political institutes. With the emergence of party of “power” supported by the majority of population advocating  parliamentary democracy political spectrum has changed. The arising conflict of interests subjected to collision of positions  regarding the model of political governance was overcome by  military coup. Analyzing the political spectrum on the threshold of  elections the author comes to conclusion that the restoration of  compromised model of political governance sample of 80-90 years of  XX century is the most likely option of political development of  Thailand in the near future. Though it differs in one aspect – the  social structure has changed, there is the rise of that groups of population that intend to participate in the political process, what  will force the power to be more transparent and social oriented. These challenges face the political parties as well.


2018 ◽  
pp. 16-22
Author(s):  
Nataliya Khoma

The process of the formation of the party system of Cyprus was considered. The period from colonial to 1981 is covered. The factors that influenced the evolution of the parties of Cyprus, in particular the internal conflict, were underlined. Emphasizes the importance of the ethnic component of the population of Cyprus. The attention was paid to the role of the Orthodox Church in shaping the political system of Cyprus. The article analyzes the norms of the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus (1960) concerning political parties, in which the focus was on the parliamentary aspect of party activity. The role of Archbishop Makarios III, the first president of Cyprus, for the further evolution of the party system in the 1960–70s was revealed. Presented chronology of the appearance of the main parties of Cyprus and their participation in elections and coalitions. The article emphasizes that after the accession of Cyprus to the EU in 2004, the party system of the state is experiencing the trend of the newest European tendencies on the national party palette: the level of people’s confidence in the parties is decreasing, the party identity is blurred, the voter turnout is gradually decreasing, new types of parties are emerging, Radicalization is notable and so on. The party system of Cyprus is special, even if only within the EU there is a pro-communist party (Progressive Party of the Labor People of Cyprus), represented in the European Parliament, among the leading political forces. It was emphasized that the political parties of Cyprus until 1974 were purely electoral mechanisms. The new stage of development began with the stabilization of the post-colonial political system of Cyprus. At this time, the church lost its past influence, and the majoritarian electoral system alienated itself. This led to a new stage in the development of the party system in the late 1970s. It is noted that the determining factor was the transition to a proportional electoral system and the introduction of mandatory participation of voters in the vote. It was emphasized that these legislative innovations became important factors in the development of the modern party system of Cyprus. Since that time, the Cypriot parties have become more independent and united in the coalition.


2012 ◽  
Vol 48 (No. 12) ◽  
pp. 544-553
Author(s):  
P. Blažek ◽  
M. Kubalek

This study deals with the founding and development of agrarian political parties and movements in selected postcommunist states (with the emphasis put on the Czech party system in the early 1990‘s). The topic is discussed from the point of view of classic political science theories, namely the historical conflict approach of Stein Rokkan and Seymour Martin Lipset, complemented with Derek Urwin’s theory regarding emergence of agrarian parties as a means of defense of country against urbanization. The results of research into the urban – rural cleavage and its influence on the genesis of agrarian political parties in selected post-communist countries after 1989 seem to support the above mentioned theories (even though those were originally formulated for a much earlier period when the Western party systems were first coming into existence. These can be applied also to the Czech environment, where several profession-based political parties were established in the early 1990’s, some of which were concerned with the defense of peasants’ and farmers’ interests. The attempts to create profession-based parties in the Czech political system were destined to fail for several reasons. The first was a striking ideological profiling of the bipolar party spectrum, causing general parties to pick up the themes and voters concerned with economic recession, and radicalization of electorate. The second reason lied in the diminishing numbers of potential voters, a result of agriculture modernization and general urbanization of society, which caused that the city-country conflict was reflected in the election results only marginally. The result was similar to other post-Soviet states, with a specific exception of Poland: agrarian parties and movements lost their former influence.


2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-338
Author(s):  
Wonjae Hwang ◽  
Ian Down

We argue that international trade affects party systems but that this impact is conditioned on the types of societal interests trade brings about. When factor mobility is high, trade promotes class-based grievances that are unlikely to affect the structure of the party system. However, when factor mobility is low, trade will increase the diversity of group interests and policy preferences, thereby pressuring structural change in the party system. A consequence is an increase in the effective number of political parties. The empirical analysis supports these expectations. This paper contributes to our understanding of the political impact of economic liberalization on representative democracy.


2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 244-265
Author(s):  
Alena Klvaňová

Abstract For the past two decades, the characteristic feature of the Czech Republic and the Republic of Slovenia’s party system has been relatively invariable and closed to fundamental change. In both cases, there has been a distortion of the change and its nature which occurred around 2010, when new political entities began to emerge on the political scene. These entities have received support from a large part of the electorate. The reason for the success of the new political parties is mainly related to the dissatisfaction of the Czech and Slovenian public with the political situation and the conviction of citizens about the widespread corruption among public officials. The success of the newly formed entities caused the decline of primarily established parties. The aim of this article is to determine the effect of these changes on the party systems, and simultaneously to answer the question, to what extent both party systems are institutionalized. The answer to this question can be obtained by measuring the extend of institutionalization of party systems based on three criteria, which are incorporation of political parties in the party system, party system stability and quality of party competition.


2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (113) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tserennadmid Chuluunbaatar

This article discusses the origins and development of political parties in the Republic of Turkey, the political forces in Turkey during Ataturk's period, and the political turmoil in Turkey during the second half of the XX century. The article includes detailed research on the struggle for the survival, in some cases, the forced closure of certain political parties and groups in Turkey, a country with a distinctive Islamic and Western oriented society. In this regards, this article aims to explain in detail, how the method of operation was followed, what political parties and groups have been emerged, what positions do they occupy in the political system, how did they affect social and political spheres, structure, organizational characteristics of Turkey. The topic was selected explore the following facts and factors: at first, to show the reasons and historical circumstances of the formation of the first political party, to identify the role and places of parties in the political and social life, thirdly, to clarify the reasons for the formation of a multi-party system; Fourth, it sets out the specifics of the development of major political parties in Turkey since 1990s. Бүгд Найрамдах Турк Улс дахь улс төрийн намын үүсэл, хөгжил Хураангуй: Энэхүү өгүүлэлд Бүгд Найрамдах Турк улс (БНТУ) дахь улс төрийн намуудын үүсэл, хөгжлийн талаар тэр дундаа Бүгд Найрамдах улс байгуулсан цаг үе буюу дотоод улс төрийн амьдралд М.К.Ататуркээр удирдуулсан улс төрийн хүчнээс гадна үзэл, хандлагаараа ялгаатай нийгмийн бүлгүүд үүсэж, оршин байхын төлөө тэмцэж, зарим тохиолдолд хүчээр хаагдах хүртэл олон үйл явдал өрнөсөн, өвөрмөц үеийг сонгон судлахыг зорив.Исламын шашинтай боловч барууны чиг баримжаатай хөгжлийн зам сонгосон Турк улсын хувьд чухамхүү улс төрийн нам, олон намын тогтолцоо бүрэлдэн бий болсон түүхэн үйл явцтай холбогдох архив болон судалгааны мэдээлэл түлхүү ашиглалаа.Ингэхдээ БНТУ-ын түүхийн чухам хэдий үед улс төрийн ямар нам, бүлэг бий болж, дотоод улс төрийн амьдралд ямар байр суурь эзэлж, хэрхэн нөлөөлж, ямар нийгмийн бааз суурь, бүтэц бүрэлдэхүүн, зохион байгуулалтын шинж төрх, улс төрийн үйл ажиллагааны арга хэлбэрийг мөрдөж байсан талаар тайлбарлалаа.Сэдвийг сонгож авахдаа: нэгдүгээрт, Турк улсад сонгодог утгаараа улс төрийн анхны нам үүссэн шалтгаан, түүхэн нөхцөлийг харуулах, хоёрдугаарт, ХХ зууны Туркийн улс төрийн намын үйл ажиллагааг зохицуулж байсан хууль, эрх зүйн орчны онцлогийг харуулах гуравдугаарт, олон намын тогтолцоо үүсэн, бүрэлдсэн нөхцөлийг тодотгох, дөрөвдүгээрт, 1990 оноос хойших Туркийн улс төрийн намын тогтолцооны төлөвшил, онцлогийг харуулах зорилтуудыг дэвшүүлсэн болно. Түлхүүр үгс: Улс төрийн нам, үзэл суртал, хөгжлийн хандлага, сэтгэлгээний түүх, түүхийн үечлэл


Author(s):  
Rudy B. Andeweg ◽  
David M. Farrell

This chapter discusses the decline of political parties as a possible cause of the decline of legitimacy. Political parties constitute a link between the citizens and the political system, and therefore a loss of support could delegitimize the political system. However, the decline of political parties can only cause legitimacy decline if they are indeed in decline and if there is a causal relationship between citizens’ involvement in political parties and political support. The chapter argues that empirical evidence for party decline is limited, as parties may have undergone transformation rather than decline. Using ESS data from 2002 to 2010, the chapter finds only weak relations between political support and party membership and party closeness. However, being close to a particular party is more important than being a member of a political party, and is interpreted as a sign that the party system facilitates citizens in making meaningful political choices.


Author(s):  
Peter Ferdinand

This chapter deals with political parties: why they emerged, how they can be classified, what functions they perform, how they interact, and what challenges they are facing today. One of the paradoxes about democracies is that there is almost a unanimous consensus about the indispensability of political parties. On the other hand, the benefits of being a member of a political party are bound to be minuscule compared to the costs of membership. Thus it is irrational for people to join parties. They should only form (small) interest groups. The chapter first provides a historical background on the development of political parties before discussing their functions, such as legitimation of the political system, structuring the popular vote, and formulation of public policy. It then considers different types of political parties as well as the characteristics of party systems and concludes with an analysis of the problems facing political parties today.


2008 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcus Mietzner

AbstractThis article compares Indonesia's party systems of the 1950s and the post-Suharto period. It explores the question of why the party system of the 1950s collapsed quickly, while that of the contemporary polity appears stable. Challenging established assumptions that party systems fail if their individual parties are weakly institutionalised, I submit that the fundamental difference between the party politics of the 1950s and today's democratic system is related to the character of inter-party competition in both periods. While inter-party contestation in the 1950s took place at the far ends of the politico-ideological spectrum, the competition between parties in the contemporary democracy exhibits centripetal tendencies, stabilising the political system as a whole.


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