Introduction

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Bäck ◽  
Gissur Ó. Erlingsson
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Organizational Structure ◽  
Party System ◽  
Comparative Perspective ◽  
Complex Environment ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Parliamentary Democracies ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Social ◽  
Strong Position

This introduction to the section on the party system in Sweden starts with the premise that political parties are essential for the upholding of legitimacy in parliamentary democracies. Four chapters make up the section. The first focuses on the changing Swedish party system, where Social Democrats historically have held an exceptionally strong position, which has weakened during recent years. The second analyzes the parties’ internal organizational structure, suggesting that although Swedish parties have become more professionalized, and the ‘mass party’ has faded away, this does not imply they have become internally less democratic. The third chapter focuses on representation, arguing that Swedish parties today face a more complex environment than before, with more diversity among representatives. The concluding chapter suggests that some features of Swedish cabinets stand out in a comparative perspective, with many single-party minority governments, where the Social Democrats have ruled with the help of ‘support party coalitions’.

The Party System

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Aylott
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Party System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
System P ◽  
The Social ◽  
Patterns Of Interaction

A party system refers to the political parties that operate in a given polity and to their patterns of interaction. The Swedish system was long associated with several features: it had five parties; they were aligned in two informal blocs; and one party, the Social Democrats, has provided much the biggest, dominating governments. These patterns, summarized as “moderate pluralism,” were also stable. Since the 1980s, much has changed. There are now more parties in Parliament. By 2010 the bloc structure looked remarkably institutionalized. But a more “polarized pluralism,” seen briefly in the 1970s and 1990s, might now be in prospect.

The Ideology of Socialism and the Armenian Political Parties

wisdom ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-113
Author(s):  
Gegham HOVHANNISYAN
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Organizations ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Time Period ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Forces ◽  
The 19Th Century ◽  
The Given

The article covers the manifestations and peculiarities of the ideology of socialism in the social-political life of Armenia at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. General characteristics, aims and directions of activity of the political organizations functioning in the Armenian reality within the given time-period, whose program documents feature the ideology of socialism to one degree or another, are given (Hunchakian Party, Dashnaktsutyun, Armenian Social-democrats, Specifics, Socialists-revolutionaries). The specific peculiarities of the national-political life of Armenia in the given time-period and their impact on the ideology of political forces are introduced.

Pre-Electoral Coalition Formation in Parliamentary Democracies

2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
SONA NADENICHEK GOLDER
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Party System ◽  
Executive Power ◽  
Electoral Rules ◽  
Systematic Analysis ◽  
Parliamentary Democracies ◽  
Electoral Coalitions ◽  
Vast Literature ◽  
Coalition Size ◽  
Government Coalition

Political parties that wish to exercise executive power in parliamentary democracies are typically forced to enter some form of coalition. Parties can either form a pre-electoral coalition prior to election or they can compete independently and form a government coalition afterwards. While there is a vast literature on government coalitions, little is known about pre-electoral coalitions. A systematic analysis of these coalitions using a new dataset constructed by the author and presented here contains information on all potential pre-electoral coalition dyads in twenty industrialized parliamentary democracies from 1946 to 1998. Pre-electoral coalitions are more likely to form between ideologically compatible parties. They are also more likely to form when the expected coalition size is large (but not too large) and the potential coalition partners are similar in size. Finally, they are more likely to form if the party system is ideologically polarized and the electoral rules are disproportional.

scholarly journals Bringing party organization back in: a comparative analysis of party representation in Europe

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 692-706
Author(s):  
Nathalie Giger ◽  
Gijs Schumacher
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Organizational Structure ◽  
Vertical Integration ◽  
Comparative Studies ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Organizational Characteristics ◽  
Comparative Perspective ◽  
Party Organization

AbstractIn this study we focus on party organizational characteristics as key determinants of party congruence. We examine how the horizontal and vertical integration of parties is linked to representation in comparative perspective. We further focus on how congruence is achieved by detailing our expectation regarding effects on the uncertainty versus bias in the estimates of party constituents' opinion. Exploiting a comparative database on political parties and data from Comparative Studies of Electoral Systems, we show that having a complex organizational structure and being leadership dominated makes parties less representative of their constituencies. These findings carry important implications for the study of political representation but also for the literature on political parties in crisis.

Snap election may not end Austrian government crisis

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Critical Line ◽  
Foreign Minister ◽  
Party Leader ◽  
Parliamentary Election ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Vice Chancellor ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Eu

Significance This comes after the sudden resignation of Vice Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner as head of the OeVP, announced on May 10, precipitated a government crisis. His successor as party leader, 30-year-old Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, two days later unilaterally declared the collapse of the grand coalition with the Social Democrats (SPOe) live on television, demanding a snap parliamentary election. Impacts Kurz is likely to represent a more critical line on the EU, pushing for reforms. Bad blood between the SPOe and the OeVP could open the door for a coalition with the FPOe even if it incurs losses. As in France, there is a trend towards personality politics in a country where political parties have traditionally been dominant.

Republicans and Socialists and the Origins of Italian Political Parties

Modern Italy ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 309-325
Author(s):  
Paolo Morisi
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Party System ◽  
Political Movements ◽  
Initial Formation ◽  
National Crisis ◽  
Italian Case ◽  
The Social ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Science Centres

A central debate in political science centres on the origins of political parties and specifically on the question as to whether they emerged as a result of the rise of parliamentary institutions. Regarding the Italian party system, the commonly held view is that Italian parties emerged as a consequence of national unification and the establishment of parliament. This article contributes to the debate on the origins of Italian parties by presenting empirical evidence on the timing of their initial formation, analysing data regarding the social base, membership, organisational articulation and policy-making accomplishments of the two major political movements active before and after the establishment of the national parliament. The article argues that, at least in the Italian case, parties did not originate in the legislature; rather, similar to countries such as Germany and Spain, Italian parties developed as a result of a major national crisis.

Political parties and policy analysis in Colombia

2020 ◽  
pp. 241-256
Author(s):  
Sebastián Líppez-De Castro
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Policy Analysis ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Policy Actor ◽  
The Third ◽  
Political Party System ◽  
Historical Trajectory

This chapter traces the development of the political party system in Colombia, focusing on characteristics related to their production or consumption of policy analysis. It stresses that political parties will not fully utilize policy analysis to guide their decisions and priorities, as long as clientelistic linkages prevail. It also mentions the third or nongovernmental sector, which is increasingly recognized as an important policy actor or potential policy actor in all countries. The chapter describes the historical trajectory of the Colombian party system, its make-up in the 21st century, and key institutional features affecting parties' use of policy analysis. It identifies some of the mechanisms through which 21st-century Colombian political parties produce or rely on policy analysis.

The Recent Parliamentary Elections in Sweden

1941 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-108
Author(s):  
Ben A. Arneson
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Parliamentary Elections ◽  
Scandinavian Peninsula ◽  
The People ◽  
Lower House ◽  
The Social

With the tense international situation as an ominous background, the regular quadrennial parliamentary elections for the lower house were held in Sweden in September, 1940. Four years ago, the autumn of 1936 witnessed spirited and warmly contested parliamentary elections in both Sweden and Norway. Because Norway's constitution was amended in 1937 to provide for quadrennial rather than triennial elections, the autumn of 1940 would—save for the German invasion of the Norwegian democracy—have seen nation-wide parliamentary elections in both countries of the Scandinavian peninsula. With Sweden as the only Scandinavian nation remaining free and independent, it has been interesting to note what effect, if any, the tremendous pressures from the surrounding totalitarian states has had on democratic processes in the Swedish state.Over a year ago, the Swedish cabinet was reorganised into a National Cabinet with all leading political parties represented. As the time for the elections approached, some of the minority parties expressed willingness to postpone the contest, even to the extent of ignoring the constitutional provision for quadrennial elections. The remarkable expression of confidence by the smaller parties in the largest party—the Social Democrats—was countered by an equally remarkable stand taken by the leader of the Social Democrats, Prime Minister Per Albin Hansson, who insisted that the democratic processes of a popular election should be continued. The prime minister's view was accepted by all parties, since it was felt by all leaders that in such a time of stress it would be an indication of democratic strength for the parliament to go to the people. All were agreed also that the parties which would, in normal times, be in opposition should continue as vital going concerns.

AN ESSENTIAL CENTER–PERIPHERY ELECTORAL CLEAVAGE AND THE TURKISH PARTY SYSTEM

2013 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 751-773 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Michael Wuthrich
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Party System ◽  
Electoral Outcomes ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
The Social ◽  
Turkish Politics ◽  
Significant Patterns ◽  
The Masses ◽  
Electoral Division ◽  
Center Periphery

AbstractFor nearly forty years, scholars have utilized the metanarrative of a center–periphery cleavage first proposed by Şerif Mardin to explain a variety of phenomena in Turkish politics and society. When used to interpret electoral cleavages in the multiparty period, however, a center–periphery cleavage cannot effectively explain electoral outcomes. Focusing on the initial stage of multiparty competition, when the cleavage is often said to have been most salient, this article explores the empirical evidence to show that the concept as commonly employed has actually confounded an effective understanding of electoral behavior in Turkey. Rather than demonstrating a clear electoral division between the elites of the social center and the masses during this period, the article reveals two distinct cross-cutting patron-client strategies used by elite-dominated parties to cater to the rural population. The significant patterns of change in Turkey's electoral outcomes over time further illustrate the need to focus on how political parties and elites accumulate votes—that is, on their vote targeting strategies—rather than rely on static sociopolitical cleavages.

The Myth of the Pro-Colonialist SPD: German Social Democracy and Imperialism before World War I

2012 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 452-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens-Uwe Guettel
Keyword(s):  
World War I ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
World War ◽  
German Empire ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Military Conflict ◽  
Parliamentary Elections ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Great War ◽  
Domestic Reform

In his seminalThe German Empire, published in German in 1973, historian Hans-Ulrich Wehler posited that in respect to the German Empire's colonial policies only the SPD, unlike all other political parties, “retained its capacity to take a critical view on matters of principle.” Moreover, in Wehler's view, the SPD's critical stance on this and many other political questions along with the party's massive electoral gains in the 1912 parliamentary elections precipitated a situation in the years immediately preceding the Great War that prompted the German Empire's “old elites” to bet increasingly on a major military conflict to solve the Empire's internal political tensions (“leap into darkness”). Thus in Wehler's view the Social Democrats contributed in no small part to Imperial Germany's perceived domestic crisis, which prompted the infamous “old elites” to choose war over domestic reform in 1914.

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