Parties, Party Systems, and Party Competition

Parties and Party Systems

Definition of Political Parties

• A political party consists of individuals, including those in office, who support their retention in power.

Functions of Political Parties

1. Structure the political world: Provide a framework for political engagement.

2. Recruit and socialize political elite: Identify and train future leaders.

3. Mobilize the masses: Encourage public participation in the political process.

4. Link between rulers and the ruled: Serve as intermediaries between government and society.

Party Systems

Types of Party Systems

• Nonpartisan Democracy: No official political parties.

• Single-party System: Only one political party is legally permitted to hold power.

• One-party Dominant System: Multiple parties may exist, but only one has a credible chance of winning.

• Two-party System: Only two parties can realistically compete for power.

• Multiparty System: More than two parties can compete for power effectively.

Measuring Party Systems

• Effective Number of Parties: Reflects both the number and relative size of parties, where larger parties contribute more to the count.

• Effective Number of Electoral Parties: {N{e}} = 1 / ext{SUM}(v{i}^2), where {v_{i}} is the vote share of party {i}.

• Effective Number of Legislative Parties: {N{e}} = 1 / ext{SUM}(s{i}^2), where {s_{i}} is the seat share of party {i}.

Origins of Political Parties

Primordial View

• Parties emerge naturally to represent people's common interests and social divisions.

Instrumental View

• Political elites and entrepreneurs create parties to capitalize on unrepresented interests, possibly creating awareness of those interests.

Representing Social Cleavages

• Parties often represent various societal divisions:

  • Urban-rural cleavages

  • Confessional cleavages

  • Secular-clerical cleavages

  • Class cleavages

  • Ethnic and linguistic cleavages.

Populism

Core Components

1. People-centrism: Focus on the needs of the common people.

2. Anti-pluralism: Rejects the legitimacy of established political elites.

3. Moralized Politics: Positions issues in moral terms.

Nature of Populism

• Rather than a distinct ideology, populism serves as a lens through which various ideologies can gain traction. The ideology it is coupled with (e.g., nationalism) influences its political content.

Application of Populism

• Right-wing populism often targets minorities as adversaries, while left-wing populism may critique economic elites.

Politicized Cleavages

Identity Categories

• Individuals possess characteristics (e.g., religion, language, class) that place them in identity categories. These categories can either be socially constructed or self-evident.

Activation of Identity Categories

• Depending on the correlation of attributes:

  • Cross-Cutting Attributes: Diverse attributes lead to multiple activated identity categories (e.g., both language and region).

  • Reinforcing Attributes: Correlated attributes narrow the activated identity categories.

The Role of Electoral Institutions

Impact on Politicization

• Different electoral systems can activate various identity categories. For example, a simple majority system may lead to different coalitions compared to a supermajority requirement.

Strategic Political Behavior

• Politicians gauge which identity categories to align with based on the political landscape shaped by electoral systems.

The Dynamics of Party Competition

Types of Competition

1. Policy Competition: Parties position themselves to attract voters by offering distinct policy packages.

2. Issue Competition: Parties emphasize certain issues over others to shape voter preferences.

3. Valence Competition: Focus on non-policy traits like competence to sway undecided voters.

Programmatic vs. Nonprogrammatic Politics

• Programmatic Politics: Characterized by ideological consistency and formalized policy delivery. Decisions are based on established rules and not on personal discretion.

• Nonprogrammatic Politics: Lacks formal commitments, opting instead for discretionary resource allocation to cater to specific voter bases (e.g., clientelism).

Mechanisms of Influencing Party Systems

Duverger's Theory

• Social divisions influence party systems, mediated by electoral institutions which restrict or facilitate the translation of social demands into political representation.

• Countries with significant cross-cutting cleavages tend to develop multiparty systems, while those with reinforcing cleavages are inclined toward fewer parties.

Electoral Institutions' Effect

• Mechanical Effect: Disproportionate electoral systems reward larger parties and penalize smaller ones.

• Strategic Effect: Voters may engage in strategic voting, supporting parties with a higher chance of winning rather than their preferred option.

Conclusion

• The dynamics of party systems, the representation of social cleavages, and the strategic behavior of voters influenced by electoral systems shape political landscapes and party competition.