Reuven Y. Hazan

What kind of impact do centre parties have in parliamentary democracies? How does the existence and growth of centre parties affect party system polarization, electoral competition and government stability? This text reassesses the perception of centre parties as a force of moderation. The author argues that this intuitive judgement, which has become accepted by political scientists is dubious, if not incorrect. He examines contemporary centre parties in Europe and asserts that the opposing tendency of centre parties contributes to party system polarization.

Polarization and Competition in European Parliamentary Democracies

Centre Parties

Lawrence D. Longley

The bases of uneasy member-leadership relations, their manifestation and sometimes resolution, and the consequences of member-leadership tension to effective parliamentary performace and policy-making are considered in studies ranging from Germany to the US and New Zealand and globally.

The Uneasy Relationships Between Parliamentary Members and Leaders

Monique Leyenaar

The field of elections and electoral systems, and particularly electoral reform, has exhibited tremendous growth and cross-national appeal over the last two decades. However, beyond an increased knowledge of voting rules and their consequences for political representation, little attention has been devoted to the question of why electoral systems have recently undergone substantial change in several liberal democracies. This book addresses several new approaches to electoral reform. First, the scope of the study of electoral reform has been expanded. Second, contrary to previous studies of electoral reform, the conviction that the determinants of reform can be explained by one single approach has been replaced by a belief in a more comprehensive framework for analysis. Third, we move beyond political parties (acting in parliament and government) as the most significant source of electoral reform. Fourth, a focus on the determinants of electoral reform allows us to include motivations and objectives of electoral reform. A final advancement in the study of electoral reform is the inclusion of countries other than ‘established’ democracies. This book was published as a special issue of West European Politics.

Understanding Electoral Reform

Gideon Rahat

Elections are central to democracy, but the electoral game takes place in two arenas, not only between parties but also within them. This pioneering book, by the leading scholars on the topic, is a culmination of two decades of research. It presents a new approach to understanding political parties, sheds light on their inner workings and offers the first comprehensive analysis of the way parties choose their candidates for public office. Candidate selection is,after all, the function that separates parties from other organizations. This book defines the field of candidate selection, provides a framework for its future analysis by scholars and analyses the consequences of different candidate selection methods on democracy. It is based on empirical datagathered from dozens of countries. The book explains which candidate selection method is best for democracy and addresses the question 'Can too much participation harm democracy?'

Reuven Y. Hazan

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