Rules and Dominant Party Regimes

2021 ◽  
pp. 217-241
Author(s):  
Graeme Gill
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Dominant Party ◽  
Institutional Revolutionary Party ◽  
Presidential System ◽  
Revolutionary Party ◽  
Ruling Party

This chapter examines how rules have operated in two electoral authoritarian dominant party regimes, Malaysia under Mahathir (1981–2003) and Mexico under the Institutional Revolutionary Party (1929–2000). The nature of the party, one designed to participate in a competitive electoral process (even if unfair because it is tilted in favour of the ruling party), is an important factor in shaping the rules and how they worked. The fact that one is a parliamentary and the other a presidential system also provides scope to see how institutions affect rules and their performance.

Lázaro Cárdenas and Cardenismo

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Mexican Revolution ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Cultural Transformation ◽  
The Political ◽  
Reform Agenda ◽  
Institutional Revolutionary Party ◽  
Revolutionary Party ◽  
Lazaro Cardenas ◽  
Ruling Party

Lázaro Cárdenas served as Mexico’s president from 1934–1940. His presidency marked the end of the “Maximato,” the period in which the former president Plutarco Elías Calles exercised control. It bridged the gap between the rocky postwar years of the 1920s and the authoritarian dominance of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) that characterized the rest of the 20th century. Cárdenas is Mexico’s most studied and best remembered president. To the extent that the Mexican Revolution ever was truly radical or popular, it was during the Cárdenas presidency. Cardenismo is an amorphous term that refers both to Cárdenas’s administration and his reform agenda. Cardenistas were a diverse coalition of supporters, some who advocated his agenda and others who merely allied themselves with his administration for non-ideological reasons. Cárdenas set out to realize what he saw as the promises of the revolution: justice for workers and peasants. He distributed about twice as much land as his predecessors combined, and he promoted unionization and strikes. He famously expropriated and nationalized the petroleum industry in dramatic defense of the Mexican worker. These actions earned him enduring affection, although he did not receive universal support even among the disenfranchised while in office. Many opposed his policies, especially those tied with the project of cultural transformation whose origin came earlier, but whose objectives Cárdenas sought to support, especially secularization. Cárdenas’s “Socialist Education” project faced particularly fierce opposition, and he was forced to abandon it along with most of the anticlerical agenda after 1938. That same year, he reorganized the ruling party along corporatist lines and rebaptized it the “Party of the Mexican Revolution,” or PRM. That restructuring is largely credited with having created the conditions under which future administrations would be able to exercise authoritarian control, although this was not Cárdenas’s intention. His presidency is more noted for what it failed to accomplish than for its successes. Nevertheless, his legacy lives on, most visibly in countryside and in the political career of his son Cuahtémoc, who has for decades struggled to fulfill his father’s vision.

scholarly journals The Essential Features of Electoral Process of Armenia in the Context of Current Changes in the Electoral Code

wisdom ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (7) ◽  
pp. 174
Author(s):  
Anahit GHARIBYAN
Keyword(s):  
Voting Behavior ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Electoral Cycle ◽  
Presidential System ◽  
Main Factors ◽  
Further Development

A constitutional referendum was held in Armenia on 6 December 2015. The amendments to the constitution changed the country from having a semi-presidential system to a parliamentary republic, with the changes planned to take place during the 2017–18 electoral cycle. The results of the referendum determine not only the current changes in the electoral code, but also the necessity and effectiveness of the new electoral system. Particularly, by replacing the majoritarian system to the proportional system and by increasing the representativeness of the parliament for some groups, we can create basis for the further development of the country. Above all in the article we discussed the main factors that have a big impact on the voting behavior of the citizens.

scholarly journals LOS PUEBLOS INDÍGENAS Y LOS DESAFÍOS DEL DERECHO EN CONTEXTOS NEOLIBERALES: Entre el uso estratégico, el despojo y la criminalización

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Teresa Sierra ◽  
Orlando Aragón
Keyword(s):  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Civic Culture ◽  
Old Regime ◽  
Partido Revolucionario Institucional ◽  
Institutional Revolutionary Party ◽  
Great Hope ◽  
Democratic Practices ◽  
Electoral Defeat ◽  
Revolutionary Party ◽  
Social Sectors

El año 2000 supuso un momento de una gran esperanza para amplios sectores sociales de México. La derrota electoral que sufrió ese año el Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), que gobernó al país durante más de setenta años, parecía augurar nuevos aires al anquilosado Estado mexicano, una supuesta apertura para la construcción de relaciones más igualitarias con sectores sociales históricamente marginados, en especial con los indígenas, y en general lo que algunos grupos veían como el florecimiento, por fin, de una cultura cívica arraigada en prácticas democráticas y en el multipartidismo.Esta expectativa, sin embargo, pronto se desvaneció; no sólo no se produjeron los cambios esperados, sino que se profundizaron y sofisticaron las prácticas anti-democráticas del viejo régimen; así como la marginación y exclusión económica a causa de la radicalización de las políticas neoliberales que comenzaron con los últimos gobiernos del PRI. En el caso de los pueblos indígenas las acotadas reformas constitucionales del 2001, que les reconocieron derechos de libredeterminaciòn y autonomía, pronto mostraron sus límites al acompañarse de reglamentaciones que redujeron los alcances de los derechos reconocidos y que se acompañaron de políticas dirigidas a fomentar la privatización de las tierras indígenas y a facilitar la incursión del capital transnacional en zonas con recursos naturales atractivos a la demanda del capitalismo mundial.---INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND THE CHALLENGES OF THE LAW IN NEOLIBERAL CONTEXT: Between strategic use, dispossession and criminalization.The year 2000 marked a time of great hope for many social sectors in Mexico. The electoral defeat, that happened this year, of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled the country for over seventy years, seemed to herald new life to the stagnant Mexican state, an alleged opening to the construction of more egalitarian relationships with historically marginalized social sectors, especially with the Indians, and in general, with what some groups saw as the flourishment of a civic culture rooted in democratic practices and in a multiparty system.These expectations soon faded, however; not only did it not produce the expected changes but it sophisticated and deepened anti-democratic practices of the old regime; as well as helped economic exclusion and marginalization because of the radicalization of neoliberal policies that began with the previous PRI governments. For indigenous peoples the bounded constitutional reforms of 2001, which recognized their rights of free self determination and autonomy, soon showed its limits accompanied by regulations that reduced the scope of rights granted and which were accompanied by policies to promote privatization of indigenous lands and to facilitate the incursion of transnational capital in areas with attractive natural resources to the demand of world capitalism.keywords: indigenous people, neoliberalism, violence.

scholarly journals Neopatrimonialism and Party Clientelism

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teimuraz Kareli
Keyword(s):  
Social Groups ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Dominant Party ◽  
The Government ◽  
Basic Features ◽  
The Right ◽  
Party Dominance ◽  
Ruling Party

The article deals with the features of formation of the party systems in the post-Soviet space. To understand the specific processes, the attention is focused on the inverse logic of the post-Soviet states, the basic features of which can be expressed by the concept of neopatrimonialism. In this context the functioning features of political parties, their principal tasks and the logic of creating the "power party" are described. The article examines the key criteria for the concept of the dominant party, such as its ability to consistently and steadily win the elections, the significant duration of its stay in power, as well as its personnel Control over the government. In the sociopolitical discourse the "power party" enjoys a privileged ideological position and has more opportunities compared to its competitors to appeal to voters. Along with that the party dominance reveals itself not only in its external manifestation (the stay in power), but also in the substantial one – the ability to exercise an effective political choice. The article analyzes the factors of sustainability of the "power party" systems: the historical merits of the "power party"; the ruling party’s ability to effectively take advantage of the electoral system; its strong relationships with the most affluent social groups and major corporations, as well as with the predominant ethnic or linguistic social groups; a privileged access of the ruling party to media resources. These factors are also effective in the polycentric political systems without any dominant party. However, under the dominant party systems they manifest themselves in a complex way, providing the ruling camp with a multi-layered protection due to a synergy effect. Particular attention is paid to the phenomenon of clientelism, widely used by the ruling party as a strategy of political mobilization. However, if discrimination arose by clientelism reaches the level that denies clients the right to choose, this is certainly not consistent with the rules of democracy.

scholarly journals The Current Political Challenges to the Mexican Democratisation Process

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 87-113
Author(s):  
Lisdey Espinoza Pedraza
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Political Society ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Institutional Revolutionary Party ◽  
Current State ◽  
Revolutionary Party

This paper will attempt to answer what the current state of contemporary democracy in Mexico is after the return of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) to the presidency by analysing the role of Civil Society, Political Society and the Rule of Law from 2012 to 2018. This paper will also explore if the party’s return was indeed a step backwards in the process of Mexican democratisation, or whether it was simply another step on a long road in which the various political parties alternate power. In 2018, Mexico elected its new president for the next consecutive 6 years along with a fair number of congressional seats and local gubernatorial posts, an election that again put Mexican democracy through a difficult test.

The Politics of Presidential Term Limits in Mexico

2019 ◽  
pp. 141-158
Author(s):  
Joseph L. Klesner
Keyword(s):  
Term Limits ◽  
Executive Power ◽  
Porfirio Diaz ◽  
Presidential System ◽  
Revolutionary Party

In Mexico’s presidential system, the struggle over term limits was at the heart of efforts to institutionalize regimes from 1857 through 1933. Before the 1910 Revolution, Porfirio Díaz both called for his predecessors’ overthrow by appealing to the principle of no-re-election and then manipulated that principle in order to stay in power. The rallying cry of the 1910 Revolution became “Effective Suffrage, No-Reelection.” Despite a late-1920s effort to backpedal from no-re-election, the principle has been scrupulously adhered to. It was extended to all electoral offices in 1933. As a consequence, the revolutionary party was able to avoid one-man rule during its 71 years in power. Term limits promoted the circulation of party militants in electoral office and appointed positions even while it weakened the legislature in its relationship to executive power. Even after the revolutionary party lost power in 2000, it kept reformers from amending non-re-election for legislators until 2014.

From Nominal to Substantive Democracy: The Role and Design of Election Management Bodies

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Trebilcock ◽  
Poorvi Chitalkar
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
The Other ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Election Administration ◽  
Financial Autonomy ◽  
Political Group ◽  
History Of

The last quarter of the century has seen a wave of new democracies. However in many democracies, the electoral process is fraudulent and powerful incumbents manipulate elections. This calls for a distinction to be drawn between nominal and substantive democracies and this paper focuses on such nominal democracies, where elections are often a façade and democracy is rendered meaningless. Instances of fraudulent elections are rampant in the recent history of many developing countries, creating a need to reform electoral processes. Numerous factors must co-exist for the existence of free and fair elections but this paper focuses on independent and impartial institutions of election administration. An effective election management body (EMB) must be independent of the executive, operate without partiality to any political group, have a broad mandate and enjoy financial autonomy. Against this backdrop, this paper surveys the electoral experiences across five regions - Asia, Latin America, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle-East. Successful electoral experiences are found to be associated with independent and impartial EMB's that are vested with broad mandates. Such EMB's have succeeded not only in conducting free and fair elections but also enhancing respect for the electoral process. On the other hand, failures of free and fair elections can be traced back to poorly functioning EMB's that fall short of normative benchmarks. This paper proposes reforms to EMB's as a step towards establishing credible and legitimate electoral processes.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 2001/2

2001 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 230-235
Keyword(s):  
General Election ◽  
Election Campaign ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
High Court ◽  
Democratic Change ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Election Results ◽  
Ruling Party

CHALLENGING RESTRICTIONS ON THE RIGHT TO PROTECTION OF THE LAW IN ZIMBABWE.In June 2000, a general election was held in Zimbabwe. Of the 120 common roll constituencies, 62 were won by the ruling party, ZANU(PF) and 57 by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). The MDC alleged that the general election campaign was marred by widespread violence, intimidation and illegal practices. As a result proceedings were instituted in the High Court challenging the outcome of the electoral process in 37 constituencies. The hearings were due to commence in January 2001. On 8 December the President issued the Electoral Act (Modification) (No. 3) Notice, 2000 (SI 318/2000), which purported to justify the validation of the election results by reference to a series of assertions.

Carlos Salinas de Gortari and His Legacy

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Morris
Keyword(s):  
Free Trade Agreement ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Mexican History ◽  
Institutional Revolutionary Party ◽  
Neoliberal Reforms ◽  
Carlos Salinas De Gortari ◽  
Revolutionary Party ◽  
New Strategies

Mexico’s President Carlos Salinas de Gortari of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) came to power amidst crisis and controversy in 1988. Using a variety of old and new strategies and innate political skill, he largely surmounted the political crisis, gaining popularity and legitimacy for himself and support for the PRI, handing power off to his hand-picked successor six years later. During his six-year term, he implemented a series of neoliberal reforms, privatized state-owned enterprises, and overhauled and restructured the Mexican economy, turning the nation into a leading manufacturing exporter and one of the most open economies in the world. This included the historic signing of a free trade agreement with Canada and the United States in 1992. Yet many of the gains and achievements were tarnished by events in 1994. In the aftermath, Salinas would become one of the most reviled presidents in Mexican history.

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