9) Party systems and competition

Question 1

What is a party system?

Answer 1

Party systems are sets of parties that compete and cooperate with the aim of controlling government.

Question 2

What defines a liberal party?

Answer 2

Historically oldest family.

Established to demand democratization and economic liberalism.

Question 3

What defines a conservative party?

Answer 3

Historically counter-movement of old elites to liberals.

Now support of conservative values + liberal economy.

Question 4

What defines a socialist party?

Answer 4

Traditional representatives of working-class.
Now representatives of the broader middle-class profile.

Question 5

What defines a communist party?

Answer 5

Parties with anti-capitalist platform.

Traditionally attached to Soviet Union.

Question 6

What defines a dominant party system?

Answer 6

One party has the absolute majorities over a long period.

Few coalitions/alternation.

Question 7

What defines a two-party system?

Answer 7

Two competitive parties.

Majoritarian electoral systems.

Question 8

What defines a multi-party system (according to the moderate model)?

Answer 8

No absolute majorities.

Competition towards the center.

Question 9

What defines a multi-party system (according to the polarized model)?

Answer 9

Extreme parties pool other parties to the extrems.

Big ideological differences.

Question 10

What defines a bipolar party system?

Answer 10

Electoral alliances.

Combines the logic of the two party and the multi party system.

Question 11

What is a cleavage?

Answer 11

Cleavages are reflections of deep important conflicts.

Question 12

What are the three dimensions of a cleavage?

Answer 12

Structural dimension.
Cultural dimension.
Political/organizational dimension.

Question 13

Which four revolutions does cleavages result from?

Answer 13

The national revolution (19th century).
The industrial revolution (19th century).
The Russian revolution (20th century).
The post-industrial revolution (20th century).

Question 14

Which two cleavages emerge from the national revolution?

Answer 14

Centre-periphery cleavage.

State-church cleavage.

Question 15

Which two cleavages emerge from the industrial revolution?

Answer 15

Rural-urban cleavage.

Capital-labour cleavage.

Question 16

What defines the centre-periphery cleavage?

Answer 16

Emergence of nation-state.
Administrative centralization.
Regionalist parties.

Question 17

Which types of parties emerged from the centre-periphery cleavage?

Answer 17

Regional and minority parties.

Question 18

What defines the state-church cleavage?

Answer 18

Nationalism-secularism link.
State-church conflict.
Christian democracy.

Question 19

Which types of parties emerged from the state-church cleavage?

Answer 19

Conservative and religious parties.

Question 20

What defines the rural-urban cleavage?

Answer 20

Sectoral economic conflict.
Protectionism (the people) vs free trade (the industry).
Modern centre right.

Question 21

Which types of parties emerged from the rural-urban cleavage?

Answer 21

Agrarian parties.

Question 22

What defines the capital-labour cleavage?

Answer 22

Commodification.
Urbanized working class.
Conflict with employers and workers.

Question 23

What does commodification means?

Answer 23

People are turned in to a commodify/a good.

Question 24

Which types of parties emerged from the capital-labour cleavage?

Answer 24

Socialist parties.

Question 25

Which three new cleavages emerged in the 20th century?

Answer 25

The communism-socialism cleavage. The materialism-post-materialism cleavage. The integration-demarcation cleavage.

Question 26

What defines the communism-socialism cleavage?

Answer 26

``` Cleavage within working class. International revolution (communism). …or change through democracy (socialism). ```

Question 27

What defines the materialism-post-materialism cleavage?

Answer 27

Silent revolution. Old generations were occupied by the material issues. New generations were occupied by more post-material issues.

Question 28

What defines the integration-demarcation cleavage?

Answer 28

Winners of globalization are the highly skilled people. Losers of globalization are lowly skilled people. Winners will demand integration. Losers will demand demarcation.

Question 29

What does demarcation means?

Answer 29

National protection of the citizens (economic and cultural protection).

Question 30

What does re-alignment means?

Answer 30

The voters’ relationship to the parties are strong.

Question 31

What does de-alignment means?

Answer 31

The voters’ relationship to the parties are getting weaker.

Question 32

What does the market analogy says on party competition?

Answer 32

Parties calculate their strategies by formulating platforms with the goal of maximizing votes and being elected or re-elected.

Question 33

What does the spatial analogy says on party competition?

Answer 33

Parties will change position if they can get more votes, but not if an other party will take over their old position.

Question 34

What are Downs' three assumptions on party competition?

Answer 34

I: rationality. II: perfect information. III: one dimentionality.

Question 35

What does Downs conclued on party competition?

Answer 35

Parties respond to voters ideological distribution. | Centre typically promises most votes.

Question 36

What are the criticism of Downs' model?

Answer 36

``` Rationality vs psychological processes. Paradox of voting. Vote vs office vs policy seeking. One vs multi-dimensionality. Position vs valence issues. ```

Question 37

How does voters act in majoritarian party systems?

Answer 37

Strategically vote: voters tend to vote strategically to avoid wasting votes on small parties with no change of getting seats.

Question 38

How does voters act in PR systems?

Answer 38

Sincerely vote: voters vote sincerely (their first preferences), because their vote is not wasted (small parties can win seats).

Question 39

How does parties act in majoritarian systems?

Answer 39

Reducing the number of parties: plurality small parties have an incentive to merge with others to increase their changes of passing the threshold.

Question 40

How does parties act in PR systems?

Answer 40

Increasing the number of parties: parties can survive on their own and small splinter parties are not penalized.

Question 41

Which cleavage emerged from the Russian revolution?

Answer 41

The communists-socialists cleavage.

Question 42

Which cleavages emerged from the post-industrial revolution?

Answer 42

Materialist-post-materialist cleavage. | Integration-demarcation cleavage.

Question 43

Which types of parties emerged from the communist-socialist cleavage?

Answer 43

Communists parties.

Question 44

Which types of parties emerged from the material-post-material cleavage?

Answer 44

Ecologists parties.

Question 45

Which types of parties emerged from the integration-demarcation cleavage?

Answer 45

Protest parties (new radikal right).