scholarly journals Political Representation by Ethnic Parties? Electoral Performance and Party-Building Processes among Ethnic Parties in Myanmar

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-336
Author(s):  
Kristian Stokke
Keyword(s):  
Political Representation ◽  
Formal Representation ◽  
Substantive Representation ◽  
Ethnic Representation ◽  
Ethnic Parties ◽  
Party Building ◽  
Intrastate Conflicts ◽  
Past Experiences ◽  
Electoral Performance

What is the role of political representation by ethnic parties in a multi-ethnic state that has undergone a transition from military rule, and is seeking to resolve protracted intrastate conflicts? The present article examines this question through a contextual case study of ethnic parties in Myanmar – a state that is characterised by unresolved ethnic grievances and conflicts; a political transition that has created new opportunities for ethnic representation; and multiple ethnic parties making representative claims on behalf of ethnic groups. Based on a mixed methods approach, the article documents that ethnic parties have been relatively ineffective in ensuring formal and descriptive representation and have had limited possibilities for substantive representation of ethnic interests. The article also identifies key explanations for the weak electoral performance of ethnic parties, emphasising party fragmentation and vote-splitting as well as weak party institutionalisation and limited capacity to make representative claims. Finally, the article analyses strategies for party-building, in preparation for the 2020 election. Based on the common emphasis on vote-splitting, most ethnic states have seen initiatives to merge parties, while a few parties have also sought to develop their political platform and sector policies. The article concludes that ethnic parties may gain improved formal representation after the next election but questions about the parties’ capacity for substantive representation remains. The 2020 election will thus be a new test for how ethnic voters see themselves best represented, in the light of competing representative claims and past experiences: by ethnic parties or non-ethnic democracy parties?

10. Gender and Democratization

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela Paxton
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Descriptive Representation ◽  
Women's Suffrage ◽  
Substantive Representation ◽  
Democratic Representation ◽  
The World ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
Women’S Suffrage

This chapter examines the role of gender in democracy and democratization. It first considers how gender figures in definitions of democracy, noting that while women may appear to be included in definitions of democracy, they are often not included in practice. It then explores women’s democratic representation, making a distinction between formal, descriptive, and substantive representation. Women’s formal political representation is highlighted by focusing on the fight for women’s suffrage, whereas women’s descriptive representation is illustrated with detailed information on women’s political participation around the world. Finally, the chapter discusses the role of women in recent democratization movements around the world.

10. Gender and Democratization

2018 ◽  
pp. 158-170
Author(s):  
Pamela Paxton ◽  
Kristopher Velasco
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Descriptive Representation ◽  
Women's Suffrage ◽  
Substantive Representation ◽  
Democratic Representation ◽  
The World ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
Women’S Suffrage

This chapter examines the role of gender in democracy and democratization. It first considers how gender figures in definitions of democracy, noting that while women may appear to be included in definitions of democracy, they are often not included in practice. It then explores women’s democratic representation, making a distinction between formal, descriptive, and substantive representation. Women’s formal political representation is highlighted by focusing on the fight for women’s suffrage, whereas women’s descriptive representation is illustrated with detailed information on women’s political participation around the world. Finally, the chapter discusses the role of women in recent democratization movements around the world.

scholarly journals Do Disabled Candidates Represent Disabled Citizens?

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Stefanie Reher
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Public Spending ◽  
Healthcare Spending ◽  
General Election ◽  
Policy Preferences ◽  
Substantive Representation ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Political Marginalization

Abstract Whether citizens are better represented by politicians ‘like them’ has been the subject of much debate and analysis. Yet, this scholarship has largely ignored the 1 in 5 people who are disabled and experience economic, social and political marginalization. Linking voter and candidate data from the 2015 British general election, this study examines whether disabled citizens are better represented by disabled elites. It analyses the effects of disability on both preferences and preference congruence. The findings reveal that disabled citizens and candidates are more supportive of healthcare and general public spending, even within parties. At the same time, the views of disabled citizens are rarely more congruent with the positions of disabled candidates than those of non-disabled candidates, except on healthcare spending. The study provides ground-breaking insights into the role of disability in policy preferences and political representation while also highlighting broader implications of how the descriptive–substantive representation link is analysed.

Conceptions of Political Representation in Canada: An Explanation of Public Opinion

2005 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 1029-1058 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cameron D. Anderson ◽  
Elizabeth Goodyear-Grant
Keyword(s):  
Political Representation ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Election Study ◽  
Substantive Representation ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Représentation Politique ◽  
The Impact

Abstract.Despite widespread attention paid to issues of representation, how Canadians think and feel about different facets of representation are inadequately documented and understood. Using data from the 2000 Canadian Election Study (CES), the article addresses this dearth of systematic research through an examination of popularly held attitudes toward three dimensions of political representation: direct versus representative democracy, the role of the elected representative and territorial versus non-territorial bases of substantive representation. Particular attention is paid to the impact of political knowledge and the individualist/collectivist value cleavage on representational preferences. Results are discussed in light of current debates regarding institutional and representational change in Canada.Résumé.En dépit de l'attention portée aux enjeux de la représentation, les sentiments et les idées des Canadiens par rapport aux différents aspects de la représentation sont mal documentés et compris. Cet article emploie les données de l'Étude électorale canadienne (ÉÉC) et cherche à combler cette lacune en examinant les attitudes populaires par rapport à trois dimensions de la représentation politique : la démocratie directe versus représentative, le rôle du représentant élu, et les bases de représentation territoriales versus non-territoriales. Nous accordons une attention particulière aux répercussions du niveau de connaissances politiques et des valeurs individualistes ou collectivistes sur les préférences en matière de représentation. Les résultats sont examinés à la lumière des débats récents sur le renouveau institutionnel et les modifications de la représentation au Canada.

Psychological Predictors for Watching Television: The Role of Racial Representation

2021 ◽  
pp. 003329412110252
Author(s):  
Jennifer Archer ◽  
Kadie R. Rackley ◽  
Susan Broyles Sookram ◽  
Hien Nguyen ◽  
Germine H. Awad
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Dominance Orientation ◽  
Racial Ideology ◽  
Psychological Predictors ◽  
Ethnic Representation ◽  
Racial Representation ◽  
Television Shows ◽  
Making Choices ◽  
Race Ethnicity

This study explored psychological predictors that may impact viewers’ decision to watch television shows on the basis of perceived racial or ethnic representation. 1998 undergraduate students selected from a list of motivations for watching television that included race-specific motivations such as “a character is of my race/ethnicity.” Participants also completed attitudinal measures of colorblind racial ideology, social dominance orientation, ethnic identity, and ethnic stigma consciousness. Analysis revealed that prejudicial beliefs predicted less salience for racial representation when making choices about television watching, while deeper connection to one’s ethnic group predicted greater salience for representation when making these choices.

Segmental Volatility in Ethnically Divided Societies: (Re)assessing Party System Stability in Southeast Europe

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Damir Kapidžić ◽  
Olivera Komar
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Party System ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
System Stability ◽  
Southeast Europe ◽  
East European ◽  
Ethnic Parties ◽  
Stabilizing Factors

Abstract This article examines the role of ethnicity and ethnic parties as stabilizing factors in Southeast European party systems. It compares two ethnically divided countries in Southeast Europe: Bosnia and Herzegovina, where ethnic identities that form the political cleavage are firm, and Montenegro, where they are malleable. Theoretically, it addresses the debate between scholars who either find stability or instability in East European post-communist party systems. The article traces the role of ethnicity in the formation and development of electoral contests and compares the two cases by utilizing measures of block volatility, based on analysis of official electoral data. We argue that party systems in ethnically diverse countries are stable at the subsystems level, but unstable within them. In BiH, firm ethnic identity stabilizes the party system by limiting competition between blocks, leading to closure. Malleable ethnic identity in Montenegro opens competition to non-ethnic parties seeking to bridge ethnic divisions, leading to more instability. We find that party system dynamics in ethnically divided new democracies depend on identity rigidity and cleavage salience, in addition to levels of heterogeneity.

scholarly journals Can Mandated Political Representation Increase Policy Influence for Disadvantaged Minorities? Theory and Evidence from India

2003 ◽  
Vol 93 (4) ◽  
pp. 1132-1151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohini Pande
Keyword(s):  
Policy Making ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Representative Democracy ◽  
Indian States ◽  
Basic Premise ◽  
Policy Influence ◽  
Disadvantaged Groups ◽  
Institutional Features

A basic premise of representative democracy is that all those subject to policy should have a voice in its making. However, policies enacted by electorally accountable governments often fail to reflect the interests of disadvantaged minorities. This paper exploits the institutional features of political reservation, as practiced in Indian states, to examine the role of mandated political representation in providing disadvantaged groups influence over policy-making. I find that political reservation has increased transfers to groups which benefit from the mandate. This finding also suggests that complete policy commitment may be absent in democracies, as is found in this case.

When decentralisation undermines representation: ethnic exclusion and state ownership in DR Congo's new provinces

2021 ◽  
Vol 59 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-157
Author(s):  
Alma Bezares Calderon ◽  
Pierre Englebert ◽  
Lisa Jené
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Group ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Political System ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
State Ownership ◽  
The State ◽  
Dr Congo ◽  
Ethnic Representation ◽  
Ethnic Exclusion

AbstractAfrican regimes commonly use strategies of balanced ethnic representation to build support. Decentralisation reforms, often promoted in order to improve political representation and state access, can undermine such strategies. In this article we use the example of the DR Congo to show the extent to which the multiplication of decentralised provinces is upending a political system largely based until now upon collective ethnic representation in the state. Not only are Congo's new provinces more ethnically homogeneous than their predecessors, but many of them have also witnessed political takeover and monopolisation by the province's dominant ethnic group. In addition, the increased number of Congolese who now find themselves non-autochthonous to their province of residence heightens their vulnerability and the potential for local conflict. Decentralisation, whose intent was proximity to governance, might well end up excluding more Congolese from the benefits of political representation. The article uses original empirical evidence on provincial ethnic distributions to support its claims.

scholarly journals The role of the internet in testimony: the case of the ‘Forgotten Australians’

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 1151-1167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Adkins ◽  
Donna Hancox
Keyword(s):  
Web 2.0 ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Church And State ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Case Examples ◽  
Abuse And Neglect ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Past Experiences ◽  
National Museum Of Australia

This article examines the case of the Forgotten Australians as an opportunity to examine the role of the internet in the presentation of testimony. ‘Forgotten Australians’ are a group who suffered abuse and neglect after being removed from their parents – either in Australia or in the UK – and placed in Church- and State-run institutions in Australia between 1930 and 1970. The campaign by this profoundly marginalized group coincided with the decade in which the opportunities of Web 2.0 were seen to be diffusing throughout different social groups, and were considered a tool for social inclusion. We outline a conceptual framework that positions the role of the internet as an environment in which the difficult relationships between painful past experiences and contemporary injunctions to remember them, are negotiated. We then apply this framework to the analysis of case examples of posts and interaction on websites with web 2.0 functionality: YouTube and the National Museum of Australia. The analysis points to commonalities and differences in the agency of the internet in these two contexts, arguing that in both cases the websites provided support for the development of a testimony-like narrative and the claiming, sharing and acknowledgement of loss.

Societal discontent will increase in Bahrain

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Social Protest ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Arab Uprisings ◽  
Base Level

Significance Although large-scale social protest in Bahrain has been cowed over the ten years since the ‘Arab uprisings’, small-scale demonstrations recur, reflecting a base level of discontent. Mobilising issues include economic pressures, limited political representation (especially of the Shia majority) and, most recently, ties with Israel. Impacts Despite protests, Israel’s and Bahrain’s respective ambassadors will keep up high-profile activity and statements. The authorities are likely to exaggerate the role of Iranian interference in order to deepen the Sunni-Shia divide. If Riyadh manages to extricate itself from the Yemen war, that could partly reduce the pressure on Manama.

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