The relationship between the members of parliament and political parties

In: Zbornik Matice Srpske za društvene nauke: Proceedings for social sciences, Heft 135, S. 259-268

Abstract

In this paper an attempt has been made to present one of the most prominent contradictions of the contemporary parliamentarianism in states which have a proportional voting system. This contradiction stems from the three-fold relationship between: a voter, a member of parliament (MP) and a political party from whose electoral list the MP is elected. On the one hand, a person does not have the possibility to be elected in the parliament if acting independently, outside the political party and its party mechanisms and logistical capacities. On the other hand, after being appointed the parliamentary term as a result of the party's will, the person attains the freedom, through their free term of office, to distance themselves from their political party, and even to leave it and join another political option. The paper also shows that this phenomenon significantly affects and deforms the principle of citizens' sovereignty, given that it is the political parties which have the major impact on the voters' sovereign will expressed at the elections. .