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THE AUTHORS EXTEND THE ANALYSIS OF PARLIAMENTARY FREE VOTING BY EXAMINING CANADIAN MP'S VOTING BEHAVIOR ON BILL C-43, WHICH ATTEMPTED TO ESTABLISH A FEDERAL ABORTION LAW. AS IN SOME PREVIOUS STUDIES, THEY FIND THAT PARTISANSHIP WAS BY FAR THE BEST PREDICTOR OF VOTING BEHAVIOR. UNLIKE PREVIOUS RESEARCH, THEY ANALYZE FREE VOTES AT EVERY STAGE OF THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS AND FIND DIFFERENT VOTING DYNAMICS AT DIFFERENT STAGES. IN GENERAL, THE CANADIAN MP'S FELT AT GREATER LIBERTY TO VOTE AS THEIR CONSCIENCES DICTATED WHEN THEIR VOTES MATTERED LEAST. ON THE KEY ROLL CALLS LEADING TO FINAL DISPOSITION, WHEN VOTING WAS MOST VISIBLE AND OUTCOMES MOST IMPORTANT, THE MP'S COALSCED AROUND THEIR PARTIES.

WHAT FACTORS INFLUENCE PARTY RESPONSIVENESS TO SOCIOECONOMIC PROBLEMS IN OECD COUNTRIES? THE AUTHOR TESTS FOUR ALTERNATIVE REGRESSION EQUATIONS THAT MODEL THE INFLUENCE OF OBJECTIVE CONDITIONS, PUBLIC PREFERENCES, AND PARTY IDEOLOGY. HE CONCLUDES THAT HOW POLITICAL PARTIES RESPOND TO SOCIOECONOMIC PROBLEMS IS DETERMINED PRIMARILY BY THEIR LEFT-RIGHT IDEOLOGY. FURTHERMORE, PARTY RESPONSIVENESS IS NOT ONLY BOUNDED BY LEFT-RIGHT IDEOLOGY BUT ALSO BY THE INSTITUTIONAL ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH PARTIES OPERATE.

BASED ON A RANGE OF DOCUMENTARY SOURCES AND IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS, THIS ARTICLE FOCUSES ON THE CHANGING FORTUNES OF MOZAMBIQUE'S POLTICAL PARTIES FOLLOWING DEMOCRATIZATION. ON THE ONE HAND, MOST SEEM FIRMLY COMMITTED TO THE NEW MULTI-PARTY SYSTEM, WHILST THE PROSPECT OF A RESUMPTION OF GENERAL ARMED HOSTILITIES HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY REMOTE. ON THE OTHER HAND, THERE ARE FEW CLEAR POLICY DIFFERENTIALS BETWEEN THE MAJOR PARTIES. INDEED, THE BULK OF POLITICAL CONTESTATION CONCERNS ACCESS TO PATRONAGE AND MATERIAL RESOURCES RATHER THAN MATTERS OF PRINCIPLE.

Examines electoral volatility in Brazil, in a comparison of the Latin American & West European party systems. It is argued that (1) the Brazilian party system was moderately volatile during Brazil's first democracy (1946-1964); (2) the party system has been highly volatile since 1982; (3) Brazil's volatility is much higher than that in the advanced industrial democracies; & (4) the high volatility of the post-1985 period was caused by a combination of structural & institutional factors inimical to strong ties between citizens, political elites, & parties, & further boosted by the dismal economic results of 1987-1994. 7 Tables, 35 References. Adapted from the source document.

Taking the military government led by General Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) as the immediate background for an understanding of political parties in Chile's current politics, three related goals are addressed. (1) The most important elements of continuity & change between the pre- & post-Pinochet periods are identified, drawing attention to both positive elements, eg, the tripartite division of the party system, the institutionalized nature of parties, & reduction of ideological polarization, & negative elements, eg, increased distance between parties & societal interests, weakness of social actors, unelected nature of a significant number of senators, & skewed electoral law. (2) Explained is why certain elements of Chile's parties & party system have changed while others have not. (3) The significance of these elements of continuity & change is assessed in terms of their impact on the extent to which parties are representative of societal interests & the nature of competition that characterizes the party system. 1 Table, 1 Figure, 53 References. Adapted from the source document.

Compares the party systems of 20th-century Latin America, election by election, through indicators of fragmentation, volatility, personalism, ideological clarity, mean Left-Right tendency, & polarization. Analysis is based on data collected via a classification of parties participating in 149 lower or single-house legislative elections in 20th-century Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, & Venezuela. 4 Tables, 1 Figure, 48 References. Adapted from the source document.

The economic crises & adjustment processes of the 1990s decade have fundamentally challenged Latin American parties, altering established policy parameters & straining traditional social coalitions. The question of whether established parties successfully adapt to these changes is critical to democratic stability, for when parties fail & party systems decompose, democratic regimes often become vulnerable. Here, a case of successful party adaptation is examined: the (Peronist) Justicialista Party (PJ) in Argentina. Since 1989, a Peronist government has implemented a set of neoliberal reforms that run directly counter to Peronism's traditional populist program. Yet, despite this shift, the PJ has retained its mass base. It is argued that the PJ's adaptation was facilitated by a distinctive configuration of organizational features: an underinstitutionalized party hierarchy & an entrenched mass base. This combination of features permitted rapid change at the party leadership level, while helping to ensure a stable base of support. 1 Figure, 66 References. Adapted from the source document.