Political Parties (Week 9-10)

Question 1

What are the functions of political parties?

Answer 1

Coordination (Coordination within government, coordination within society, coordination between government and society), contesting elections, mobilization of the masses, source of political identity, political recruitment, and representation: agents of the people.

Question 2

What are the origins of modern parties? How did they originate and evolve?

Answer 2

Modern parties emerge within (or in reaction to) the first representative assemblies of the 16th-19th centuries. Parties of intra-parliamentary origin emerged first (16th-19th centuries) - Modern Europe. They were usually upper and/or middle classes. There was limited suffrage and parties were centered around an individual.
Parties of extra-parliamentary origin emerged later (19th-20th centuries). They were usually lower and/or working classes. Involved mobilization of more people who were previously excluded from legitimate participation and ancillary organization helped create the parties.

Question 3

What are the types of political parties (models of party organization)? (Think of this in relation to how parties evolved)

Answer 3

Cadre or elite parties (intra-parliamentary origin)/ Europe: Membership largely restricted to small group of elites during times of non-universal suffrage. Not a professional party or organization.
Mass parties (extra-parliamentary origin): Origin = 2nd half of 19th century in Europe. Involved mobilizing people and ancillary organizations. Represented interests of previously excluded groups and built on the pre-existing organization of that group (trade unions).
Catch-all parties (20th century): Electoral-professional party. Decline in ideological emphasis - less ideologically charged. Leaving more radical goals behind, if there were any.

Question 4

What is the ideological categorization of political parties in Europe? (Von Beyme)

Answer 4

tba

Question 5

What are some party systems and what are some country examples of them?

Answer 5

Dominant party system, two-party system, and multi-party system.

Question 6

What are the advantages and disadvantages of both two-party and multi-party systems?

Answer 6

tba

Question 7

How do party systems reflect societal cleavages?

Answer 7

tba

Question 8

When are party systems “institutionalized”? (Think of change of party name in France)

Answer 8

tba

Question 9

Why is there a “decline” of parties?

Answer 9

There are four causes of the decline of parties: Modernization thesis, parties seen as divorced from the needs of ordinary people, citizens grow disenchanted with the parties because their incapacity to solve complex problems, and the social identities and traditional loyalties that gave rise to parties in the first place have started to fade.

Question 10

What is a political party?

Answer 10

A political party is an autonomous group of citizens having the purpose of making nominations and contesting elections in the hope of gaining control over governmental power through the capture of public offices and the organization of the government.

Question 11

What are the main characteristics of the decline of parties?

Answer 11

Parties are becoming less effective as agents of political representation (decline in party membership, decline in partisanship - dealignment, decline in the ability to mobilize citizens), rise of anti-establishment or anti-politics movements, and the expansion of the digital media makes parties less necessary as agents of political mobilization.