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Project Hybrid regimes has democratization and non-democratic regimes as its focus. In recent years, research has shown how a number of authoritarian regimes have adopted a blend of democracy and authoritarianism rather than converting outright to full democracy. A country might for instance hold free elections but show little regard for the political and human rights of citizens. Project collaborators are operating on the premise that this type of blended or hybrid regime constitutes a distinct regime type alongside democracies, full authoritarian regimes, or totalitarian governments. They seek to explore the question of whether outside aid from full democracies can aid hybrid regimes in converting into full democracies. While the number of democratic governments around the world has increased in recent years, researchers have noted that hybrid regimes often resist efforts on the part of foreign democratic organizations to aid them toward a process of greater democratization. Citing the case of post-Soviet countries, and the Ukraine, the authors question the widely held perception by researchers that countries possessing a blend of democratic and authoritarian elements are at a transition point on the way to full democratization and that non-democratic elements of their governments merely constitute temporary setbacks. The authors, noting that heads of such regimes resist full democracy because they aren't prepared to accept challenges to their political power, argue for a new for the recognition of a new, lasting hybrid type of government characterized by elements of both democracy and authoritarianism. Adapted from the source document.

Citizens of a democracy have a two-fold task: Giving their representatives a mandate and holding those representatives accountable. Evidence is strong that voters greet such promises with a mix of hope and skepticism. The project described is aimed at adding to the body of knowledge on the subject of accountability in modern representative democracies. The project, which has drawn the support of the Comparative Party Pledges Group research network, has significance in ongoing normative discussions concerning representative democracy as well as empirical research in the field. Adapted from the source document.

While there is a general definition of democracy, in more than 2000 years of its existence there are still many questions lingering about issues such as: which individuals (if any) should be excluded from collective decision making, the role of experts, should decisions be made by popular vote or through representatives, etc. The article is a follow-up of a previous study entitled "The potential of the local democracy," & explores what representatives themselves think of democracy & the democratic decision making process. Local politicians will be asked about their idea of 1) democracy in general, 2) concrete approaches to strengthen democracy, 3) their vision of citizens' role in democracy, 4) their actual actions towards citizens. The study will consist of interviews of approx. 3000 local (city, county, & region) representatives. References. Adapted from the source document.

Considers the possibility of using the Internet as an arena for political deliberation. The Internet provides user anonymity, a feature that can be used & refined to force the participants in a discussion to focus on content & ideas rather than the sender. The systematic use of democratic avatars -- a user-identity that protects the physical identity of the sender but at the same time reveals all messages that the user has sent -- would purify the deliberation & allow dissentient opinions to be expressed without fear, while at the same time forcing the participants to be open & consistent in their argumentation. Adapted from the source document.

The Democracy Commission's case for participatory democracy is criticized. Participatory democracy undermines the political equality of the citizens, & requires a prevalent interest in public affairs that does not exist today. A compulsive & professional use of opinion polls on current political issues would be a better way to strengthen public political influence between elections. Adapted from the source document.

This article focuses on the justification of a positive & a negative attitude respectively towards judicial review. The analysis is performed by textual analysis of the texts of four authors with different opinions on the subject matter: Robert Dahl & Jeremy Waldron who have a negative attitude towards judicial review, & Erwin Chemerinsky & Ronald Dworkin who have a positive attitude. A theoretical model is being used for the analysis, which consists of different dimensions of the issue of democracy & judicial review. The study shows that there are important differences in the democratic values underpinning a positive & a negative attitude. There are differences of opinion on the balance between democracy as; process or substance, rule by the broad mass of people or rule by an elite, the spirit of the community or the rights of the individual. The analysis also points out that there are differences concerning the comprehension of the important democratic concepts of liberty & equality. Figures, References. Adapted from the source document.

The aim of the overview article is to encircle a research field focusing the role of local government in the Swedish national climate protection policy. First, the policy area of climate protection is historically identified as a part of a third generation policy areas. Secondly, relating to contemporary governance literature some steering measurements are presented. There is thus an increasing steering complexity containing hierarchical, market-based & network based steering. Thirdly, the role of local government is discussed in terms of reasons for engaging or not engaging in climate protection work. Political, institutional, financial & professional aspects are considered important in order to explain variations in municipal climate protection activities. Finally some research questions are put forth, such as how & why municipal leaders are handling uncertainty in certain ways, municipal leaders as network managers & local climate protection policy-making & implementation from perspectives of learning & democracy. References. Adapted from the source document.

The introduction to the thematic volume of Statsvetenskaplig tidskrift, which focuses on the role of political parties in democracies, outlines the scope of the volume. Adapted from the source document.