Suchergebnisse

The abrupt collapse and dissolution of the Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD), the party which governed Spain during the crucial period of the transition to democracy (1977-82), is one of the most extraordinary events in the history of European party politics. This book develops an original theoretical framework for the study of party institutionalisation, and draws on a wide range of empirical sources to offer new insights into the causes of the UCD's collapse

A review essay on books by (1) R. Dalton & M. Wattenberg (Eds), Parties without Partisans. Political Change in Advanced Industrial Democracies (Oxford: Oxford U Press, 2000); (2) R. Gunther, J. Linz, & J. R. Montero (Eds), Political Parties. Old Concepts, New Challenges (Oxford: Oxford U Press, 2002); (3) L. Diamond & R. Gunther, Parties and Democracy (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins U Press, 2001); (4) P. Mair, W. Muller, & F. Plasser (Eds), Political Parties and Electoral Change (Oxford: Oxford U Presss, 2004); & (5) R. Dalton, Democratic Challenges. Democratic Choices (Oxford: Oxford U Press, 2004).

This article presents some theoretical contours for the study of party finance and its consequences. Two broad issues are explored. First, the article develops an account of changes in patterns of party finance, and in particular the move away from the 'mass party' model of funding towards 'elite party' and 'cartel party' models. Party finance is conceptualized as a collective action problem, and four 'post-mass party' financial strategies are identified. Second, the article addresses normative issues, assessing how these four financial models perform in terms of 'liberal' and 'populist' theories of democracy. It is concluded that the mass party model remains closest to the 'democratic' ideal, while the state-financed ('cartel') model is a reasonable pragmatic response to the decline in party membership.

Commentary on Philip Jones & John Hudson's (2001) use of a transactions cost economic approach to investigating political motivations within British political parties is provided. Although Jones & Hudson's contention that a party attempts to maintain its political identity to preserve voting partisanship, their contention that political parties emerge from groups' attempt to restrict voters costs of searching for information is questioned. In addition, their assertion that political parties' recognition of a consistent political identity motivates parties' desire to emphasize political integrity is challenged. Jones & Hudson's subsequent claim -- that political parties will engage in cooperative behavior since it produces optimal results for the collective -- is deemed representative of the failures of functionalist perspectives. It is concluded that rational choice perspectives must reconsider the relationship between collective political action & democracy. 21 References. J. W. Parker