André Béteille
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198080961
- eISBN:
- 9780199082049
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198080961.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Politics, Social Movements and Social Change
Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, ...
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Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, democratic ideals and values grew in response to the oppressive rule of absolutist monarchs. In India, the idea of democracy came with colonial rule but conferred subjecthood without citizenship on the Indian people. Colonial rule kindled the aspiration of Indians to become a nation of free and equal citizens and led to the formation of a political party, the Indian National Congress. This book explores the political institutions of democracy in India, focusing on those that began to emerge from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards. It looks at Parliament and the state legislatures, the Supreme Court and high courts, and political parties, highlighting the maladies that beset these basic institutions of democracy today. After discussing the institutions of democracy, the book looks at the role of government and opposition in a democracy, civil society and the state, constitutional morality, how institutions work and why they fail, the representation of India as a society of castes and communities as well as a nation of citizens, pluralism and liberalism in India, the distinction between law and custom, and the relationship between sociology and ideology.Less
Democracy was inspired by the lofty ideals of the French Revolution: liberty, equality, and fraternity. These ideals led many countries to challenge the absolutist monarchies of the past. In Europe, democratic ideals and values grew in response to the oppressive rule of absolutist monarchs. In India, the idea of democracy came with colonial rule but conferred subjecthood without citizenship on the Indian people. Colonial rule kindled the aspiration of Indians to become a nation of free and equal citizens and led to the formation of a political party, the Indian National Congress. This book explores the political institutions of democracy in India, focusing on those that began to emerge from the middle of the nineteenth century onwards. It looks at Parliament and the state legislatures, the Supreme Court and high courts, and political parties, highlighting the maladies that beset these basic institutions of democracy today. After discussing the institutions of democracy, the book looks at the role of government and opposition in a democracy, civil society and the state, constitutional morality, how institutions work and why they fail, the representation of India as a society of castes and communities as well as a nation of citizens, pluralism and liberalism in India, the distinction between law and custom, and the relationship between sociology and ideology.
Nils Jansen
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199588763
- eISBN:
- 9780191723315
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199588763.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Philosophy of Law
Accounts of the nature of legal authority typically focus on the authority of officially sanctioned rules issued by legally recognised bodies — legislatures, courts, and regulators — that fit ...
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Accounts of the nature of legal authority typically focus on the authority of officially sanctioned rules issued by legally recognised bodies — legislatures, courts, and regulators — that fit comfortably within traditional state-centred concepts of law. Such accounts neglect the more complex processes involved in acquiring legal authority. Throughout the history of modern legal systems, texts have come to acquire authority for legal officials without being issued by a legislature or a court. From Justinian's Institutes and Blackstone's Commentaries, to modern examples such as the American Law Institute's Restatements and the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, academic codifications have come to be seen as legally authoritative, and their norms applied as such in courts and other contexts. How have such texts acquired legal authority? Does their authority undermine the orthodox accounts of the nature of legal systems? Drawing on examples from Roman law to the present day, this book offers a comparative analysis of non-legislative codifications. It offers a contribution to the debates surrounding the harmonisation of European private law, and the growth of international law.Less
Accounts of the nature of legal authority typically focus on the authority of officially sanctioned rules issued by legally recognised bodies — legislatures, courts, and regulators — that fit comfortably within traditional state-centred concepts of law. Such accounts neglect the more complex processes involved in acquiring legal authority. Throughout the history of modern legal systems, texts have come to acquire authority for legal officials without being issued by a legislature or a court. From Justinian's Institutes and Blackstone's Commentaries, to modern examples such as the American Law Institute's Restatements and the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, academic codifications have come to be seen as legally authoritative, and their norms applied as such in courts and other contexts. How have such texts acquired legal authority? Does their authority undermine the orthodox accounts of the nature of legal systems? Drawing on examples from Roman law to the present day, this book offers a comparative analysis of non-legislative codifications. It offers a contribution to the debates surrounding the harmonisation of European private law, and the growth of international law.
Robert Elgie
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199585984
- eISBN:
- 9780191729003
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199585984.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This book examines the relationship between semi‐presidentialism and democratic performance. Semi‐presidentialism — where a constitution provides for both a directly elected president and a prime ...
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This book examines the relationship between semi‐presidentialism and democratic performance. Semi‐presidentialism — where a constitution provides for both a directly elected president and a prime minister and cabinet responsible to the legislature — has become the regime type of choice for new democracies. There are now over fifty countries in the world with a semi‐presidential constitution and the vast majority of these countries have chosen this form of government since the early 1990s. This book operationalizes Shugart and Carey’s distinction between president‐parliamentarism — where the prime minister is responsible to both the legislature and to the directly elected president — and premier‐presidentialism — where the prime minister is responsible to the legislature alone. The book shows that, all else equal, the president‐parliamentary subtype is more likely to be associated with a poorer democratic performance than its premier‐presidential counterpart. The evidence is based on a mixed‐method approach, including large‐n comparative statistical studies of all semi‐presidential democracies since 1919, as well as in‐depth case studies. The case studies include Guinea‐Bissau, Mali, Portugal, and Senegal.Less
This book examines the relationship between semi‐presidentialism and democratic performance. Semi‐presidentialism — where a constitution provides for both a directly elected president and a prime minister and cabinet responsible to the legislature — has become the regime type of choice for new democracies. There are now over fifty countries in the world with a semi‐presidential constitution and the vast majority of these countries have chosen this form of government since the early 1990s. This book operationalizes Shugart and Carey’s distinction between president‐parliamentarism — where the prime minister is responsible to both the legislature and to the directly elected president — and premier‐presidentialism — where the prime minister is responsible to the legislature alone. The book shows that, all else equal, the president‐parliamentary subtype is more likely to be associated with a poorer democratic performance than its premier‐presidential counterpart. The evidence is based on a mixed‐method approach, including large‐n comparative statistical studies of all semi‐presidential democracies since 1919, as well as in‐depth case studies. The case studies include Guinea‐Bissau, Mali, Portugal, and Senegal.
Roger Scully
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198297574
- eISBN:
- 9780191598982
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198297572.003.0012
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter examines the policy impact and level of support enjoyed by the European Parliament (EP). The EP has failed to secure deep-rooted support among the European public and significant sectors ...
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This chapter examines the policy impact and level of support enjoyed by the European Parliament (EP). The EP has failed to secure deep-rooted support among the European public and significant sectors of the political elite. It is a ‘vulnerable’ legislature without a solid constituency of support, rendering its hard-won policy prerogatives subject to future challenges. This vulnerability is attributed to its inability to generate a sense of democratic legitimacy for the EU as a whole.Less
This chapter examines the policy impact and level of support enjoyed by the European Parliament (EP). The EP has failed to secure deep-rooted support among the European public and significant sectors of the political elite. It is a ‘vulnerable’ legislature without a solid constituency of support, rendering its hard-won policy prerogatives subject to future challenges. This vulnerability is attributed to its inability to generate a sense of democratic legitimacy for the EU as a whole.
Tracy L. Osborn
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199845347
- eISBN:
- 9780199949397
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199845347.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
In How Women Represent Women: Political Parties, Gender and Representation in the State Legislatures, Tracy Osborn examines two avenues through which political parties fundamentally affect how women ...
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In How Women Represent Women: Political Parties, Gender and Representation in the State Legislatures, Tracy Osborn examines two avenues through which political parties fundamentally affect how women legislators represent women by creating women’s issues policies. First, women’s party identities shape the types of policy alternatives they offer to solve women’s policy problems. Second, parties organize the legislative process by holding majority control, to varying degrees, over agenda setting and policy creation, promoting some women legislators’ policy proposals over others. Osborn tests these two avenues of influence by comparing partisan women’s legislative behavior toward the creation of women’s issues policies across different party environments in the U.S. state legislatures. She uses original election, sponsorship, and roll call data in nearly all ninety-nine state legislative chambers in 1999-2000. She concludes that Republican and Democratic women offer different solutions to women’s policy problems based in their party identities. Depending on which party controls the legislative process and how strongly they do so, this party control promotes one set of partisan policy alternatives over the other. Thus, political parties determine which women’s issues policies become law. Ultimately, this book demonstrates how essential parties are to understanding how women elected to public office translate their interest in women’s issues into substantive public policy.Less
In How Women Represent Women: Political Parties, Gender and Representation in the State Legislatures, Tracy Osborn examines two avenues through which political parties fundamentally affect how women legislators represent women by creating women’s issues policies. First, women’s party identities shape the types of policy alternatives they offer to solve women’s policy problems. Second, parties organize the legislative process by holding majority control, to varying degrees, over agenda setting and policy creation, promoting some women legislators’ policy proposals over others. Osborn tests these two avenues of influence by comparing partisan women’s legislative behavior toward the creation of women’s issues policies across different party environments in the U.S. state legislatures. She uses original election, sponsorship, and roll call data in nearly all ninety-nine state legislative chambers in 1999-2000. She concludes that Republican and Democratic women offer different solutions to women’s policy problems based in their party identities. Depending on which party controls the legislative process and how strongly they do so, this party control promotes one set of partisan policy alternatives over the other. Thus, political parties determine which women’s issues policies become law. Ultimately, this book demonstrates how essential parties are to understanding how women elected to public office translate their interest in women’s issues into substantive public policy.
Jeffrey Kahn
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199246991
- eISBN:
- 9780191599606
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199246998.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Russian Politics
After Yeltsin abandoned attempts to influence the course of republican transitions from authoritarianism, few republics persevered along clearly democratic paths. This chapter examines the course ...
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After Yeltsin abandoned attempts to influence the course of republican transitions from authoritarianism, few republics persevered along clearly democratic paths. This chapter examines the course those transition paths followed, with particular attention paid to the drafting of republican constitutions. Who controlled that process set the political agenda by defining the ‘rules of the game’. The strong presidentialism found in virtually all of the republics is a recurring theme. Ten years of presidential and parliamentary elections are examined to discern the effect of these institutional choices. The crude sultanism that emerged in the republic of Kalmykia is examined in detail.Less
After Yeltsin abandoned attempts to influence the course of republican transitions from authoritarianism, few republics persevered along clearly democratic paths. This chapter examines the course those transition paths followed, with particular attention paid to the drafting of republican constitutions. Who controlled that process set the political agenda by defining the ‘rules of the game’. The strong presidentialism found in virtually all of the republics is a recurring theme. Ten years of presidential and parliamentary elections are examined to discern the effect of these institutional choices. The crude sultanism that emerged in the republic of Kalmykia is examined in detail.
Jeffrey Kahn
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199246991
- eISBN:
- 9780191599606
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199246998.003.0008
- Subject:
- Political Science, Russian Politics
The first year of Putin's presidency resulted in the most concerted and fundamental shake‐up of federal relations since 1993. Putin ended the bilateral treaty process and vowed to create a ...
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The first year of Putin's presidency resulted in the most concerted and fundamental shake‐up of federal relations since 1993. Putin ended the bilateral treaty process and vowed to create a ‘Dictatorship of Law’. Putin's reforms are examined in detail, including the creation of presidential envoys (polpredy) and federal districts, the quasi‐judicial use of presidential decrees (ukazy), reform of the Council of the Federation, growing federal influence of regional executives and legislatures, and local self‐government. These dramatic changes led to the reform of republican constitutions and a new stage in federal‐regional relations.Less
The first year of Putin's presidency resulted in the most concerted and fundamental shake‐up of federal relations since 1993. Putin ended the bilateral treaty process and vowed to create a ‘Dictatorship of Law’. Putin's reforms are examined in detail, including the creation of presidential envoys (polpredy) and federal districts, the quasi‐judicial use of presidential decrees (ukazy), reform of the Council of the Federation, growing federal influence of regional executives and legislatures, and local self‐government. These dramatic changes led to the reform of republican constitutions and a new stage in federal‐regional relations.
Archie Brown
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780192880529
- eISBN:
- 9780191598876
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0192880527.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Russian Politics
A central thesis of the book, elaborated especially in this chapter, is that from the outset of his General Secretaryship, Gorbachev was seriously interested in political change as well as in ...
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A central thesis of the book, elaborated especially in this chapter, is that from the outset of his General Secretaryship, Gorbachev was seriously interested in political change as well as in economic reform, but that in the course of the struggle to introduce it, he came to the realization that reform was not enough and that the political system had to be comprehensively transformed. The chapter discusses six stages of transformation between March 1985 and December 1991 as well as the fourfold nature of the transformation that was required: first, the movement from authoritarianism to political pluralism; second, the need to move from a command economy with virtually 100% state ownership of the means of production to a market economy with a substantial private sector; third, the need to create a genuine federation or a looser confederation in place of the pseudo‐federalism in which the aspirations of the more self‐conscious nations within the Soviet borders had been ruthlessly suppressed; and, fourth, the need to transform foreign policy. The dilemma for Gorbachev was that the fourfold transformation was an interlinked process: any three of these basic changes were likely to be undermined by the absence of a fourth; yet, as each was implemented to a greater or lesser degree, its side effects produced complications in the other spheres. Among the political changes analysed are the breakthrough represented by the Nineteenth Party Conference of 1988, the movement from party to state power, the advent of contested elections for a new legislature, the indirect election by that legislature of Gorbachev as President, and the failure to split the Communist Party.Less
A central thesis of the book, elaborated especially in this chapter, is that from the outset of his General Secretaryship, Gorbachev was seriously interested in political change as well as in economic reform, but that in the course of the struggle to introduce it, he came to the realization that reform was not enough and that the political system had to be comprehensively transformed. The chapter discusses six stages of transformation between March 1985 and December 1991 as well as the fourfold nature of the transformation that was required: first, the movement from authoritarianism to political pluralism; second, the need to move from a command economy with virtually 100% state ownership of the means of production to a market economy with a substantial private sector; third, the need to create a genuine federation or a looser confederation in place of the pseudo‐federalism in which the aspirations of the more self‐conscious nations within the Soviet borders had been ruthlessly suppressed; and, fourth, the need to transform foreign policy. The dilemma for Gorbachev was that the fourfold transformation was an interlinked process: any three of these basic changes were likely to be undermined by the absence of a fourth; yet, as each was implemented to a greater or lesser degree, its side effects produced complications in the other spheres. Among the political changes analysed are the breakthrough represented by the Nineteenth Party Conference of 1988, the movement from party to state power, the advent of contested elections for a new legislature, the indirect election by that legislature of Gorbachev as President, and the failure to split the Communist Party.
Martin Shapiro and Alec Stone Sweet
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199256488
- eISBN:
- 9780191600234
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199256489.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
Across the globe, the domain of the litigator and the judge has radically expanded, making it increasingly difficult for those who study comparative and international politics, public policy, and ...
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Across the globe, the domain of the litigator and the judge has radically expanded, making it increasingly difficult for those who study comparative and international politics, public policy, and regulation, or the evolution of new modes of governance to avoid encountering a great deal of law and courts. In this book, two leading political scientists present a compilation of their research in 11 papers (some old, some new) that focus on how to build and test a social science and politics of law, courts, and judging. Chapters 1–5 each contain two pieces, one by each author addressing a common topic. Each pair of papers is preceded by co-authored introductions that explain how the materials presented relate to the more general purpose of developing a broad-gauge social science research agenda on law and courts, discuss the original motivations for writing the papers, and trace important (but perhaps not always obvious) connections between the two offerings. Chapter 6 consists of a co-authored piece. The opening chapter features Shapiro’s classic ‘Political Jurisprudence’, and Stone Sweet’s ‘Judicialization and the Construction of Governance’, pieces that critically redefined research agendas on the politics of law and judging. Subsequent chapters take up diverse themes: the strategic contexts of litigation and judging; the discursive foundations of judicial power; the social logic of precedent and appeal; the networking of legal elites; the law-making dynamics of rights adjudication; the success and diffusion of constitutional review; the reciprocal impact of courts and legislatures; the globalization of private law; methods, hypothesis-testing, and prediction in comparative law; and the sources and consequences of the creeping ‘judicialization of politics’ around the world. Chosen empirical settings include the United States, the GATT–WTO, France and Germany, Imperial China and Islam, the European Union, and the transnational world of the Lex Mercatoria.Less
Across the globe, the domain of the litigator and the judge has radically expanded, making it increasingly difficult for those who study comparative and international politics, public policy, and regulation, or the evolution of new modes of governance to avoid encountering a great deal of law and courts. In this book, two leading political scientists present a compilation of their research in 11 papers (some old, some new) that focus on how to build and test a social science and politics of law, courts, and judging. Chapters 1–5 each contain two pieces, one by each author addressing a common topic. Each pair of papers is preceded by co-authored introductions that explain how the materials presented relate to the more general purpose of developing a broad-gauge social science research agenda on law and courts, discuss the original motivations for writing the papers, and trace important (but perhaps not always obvious) connections between the two offerings. Chapter 6 consists of a co-authored piece. The opening chapter features Shapiro’s classic ‘Political Jurisprudence’, and Stone Sweet’s ‘Judicialization and the Construction of Governance’, pieces that critically redefined research agendas on the politics of law and judging. Subsequent chapters take up diverse themes: the strategic contexts of litigation and judging; the discursive foundations of judicial power; the social logic of precedent and appeal; the networking of legal elites; the law-making dynamics of rights adjudication; the success and diffusion of constitutional review; the reciprocal impact of courts and legislatures; the globalization of private law; methods, hypothesis-testing, and prediction in comparative law; and the sources and consequences of the creeping ‘judicialization of politics’ around the world. Chosen empirical settings include the United States, the GATT–WTO, France and Germany, Imperial China and Islam, the European Union, and the transnational world of the Lex Mercatoria.
Graeme Gill
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199544684
- eISBN:
- 9780191719912
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199544684.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory, Democratization
The integration of the new class into the political structure in Britain, France, Germany, and the USA is central to the questions that are the focus of this book. This chapter analyses the patterns ...
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The integration of the new class into the political structure in Britain, France, Germany, and the USA is central to the questions that are the focus of this book. This chapter analyses the patterns of class involvement in six major political institutions: legislature, executive, political parties, civil service, local/regional government, and structured interest groups. The chapter highlights how the pattern of bourgeois involvement is different in each country, with the greatest integration into the political system in Britain and the USA, and the least in Germany. These different patterns are related to the relative importance of different institutions, with the bourgeoisie seeming to concentrate its attention in each country on the more important institutions in the political structure.Less
The integration of the new class into the political structure in Britain, France, Germany, and the USA is central to the questions that are the focus of this book. This chapter analyses the patterns of class involvement in six major political institutions: legislature, executive, political parties, civil service, local/regional government, and structured interest groups. The chapter highlights how the pattern of bourgeois involvement is different in each country, with the greatest integration into the political system in Britain and the USA, and the least in Germany. These different patterns are related to the relative importance of different institutions, with the bourgeoisie seeming to concentrate its attention in each country on the more important institutions in the political structure.
Graeme Gill
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199544684
- eISBN:
- 9780191719912
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199544684.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory, Democratization
This chapter outlines the extent of bourgeois involvement in the major political institutions of contemporary Russia: legislature, executive, political parties, civil service, local/regional ...
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This chapter outlines the extent of bourgeois involvement in the major political institutions of contemporary Russia: legislature, executive, political parties, civil service, local/regional government, and structured interest representation. It shows how the pattern of involvement has been shaped by the institutional structure itself, and how personal contacts into the politico-administrative structure have been crucial for businessmen to not only profit but to survive.Less
This chapter outlines the extent of bourgeois involvement in the major political institutions of contemporary Russia: legislature, executive, political parties, civil service, local/regional government, and structured interest representation. It shows how the pattern of involvement has been shaped by the institutional structure itself, and how personal contacts into the politico-administrative structure have been crucial for businessmen to not only profit but to survive.
Max. M Edling
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195148701
- eISBN:
- 9780199835096
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195148703.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
Presents the Antifederalist objections to a stronger national government in the “fiscal‐military” sphere, with this chapter looking closely at Antifederalist objections to the federal fiscal powers ...
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Presents the Antifederalist objections to a stronger national government in the “fiscal‐military” sphere, with this chapter looking closely at Antifederalist objections to the federal fiscal powers of the US Constitution, and the answers of the Federalists to these. Only rarely did the Antifederalists raise any objections to the right of Congress to borrow money, but the fact that they seemed to accept that public borrowing might sometimes be necessary did not mean that they accepted the need for an unlimited federal power over taxation. In their opposition to the Constitution's tax clauses, the Antifederalists continued an Anglo‐American political tradition of opposition against state growth that in turn is but an instant of a universal resistance to the centralization of power characteristic of early modern Europe. The Antifederalist opposition centered on the future role of the state legislatures: in Antifederalist thought the state assembly had come to take on the function filled by the House of Commons in English “Country” thought, so it was regarded as a crucial barrier against government abuse and as the only institution that made possible taxation with the consent of the governed.Less
Presents the Antifederalist objections to a stronger national government in the “fiscal‐military” sphere, with this chapter looking closely at Antifederalist objections to the federal fiscal powers of the US Constitution, and the answers of the Federalists to these. Only rarely did the Antifederalists raise any objections to the right of Congress to borrow money, but the fact that they seemed to accept that public borrowing might sometimes be necessary did not mean that they accepted the need for an unlimited federal power over taxation. In their opposition to the Constitution's tax clauses, the Antifederalists continued an Anglo‐American political tradition of opposition against state growth that in turn is but an instant of a universal resistance to the centralization of power characteristic of early modern Europe. The Antifederalist opposition centered on the future role of the state legislatures: in Antifederalist thought the state assembly had come to take on the function filled by the House of Commons in English “Country” thought, so it was regarded as a crucial barrier against government abuse and as the only institution that made possible taxation with the consent of the governed.
Richard E. Matland and Kathleen A. Montgomery
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199246861
- eISBN:
- 9780191601965
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199246866.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This chapter presents a general model of female legislative recruitment based on literature on established Western democracies. It argues that institutions are important in female legislative ...
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This chapter presents a general model of female legislative recruitment based on literature on established Western democracies. It argues that institutions are important in female legislative recruitment. Outcomes depend on the supply and demand of female candidates, and the way institutions translate these factors into recruitment outcomes.Less
This chapter presents a general model of female legislative recruitment based on literature on established Western democracies. It argues that institutions are important in female legislative recruitment. Outcomes depend on the supply and demand of female candidates, and the way institutions translate these factors into recruitment outcomes.
Clyde Wilcox, Beth Stark, and Sue Thomas
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199246861
- eISBN:
- 9780191601965
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199246866.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This chapter examines the demand for women in the legislatures of post-communist Central and Eastern Europe. There is currently little demand for female legislators, with a prevailing attitude in ...
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This chapter examines the demand for women in the legislatures of post-communist Central and Eastern Europe. There is currently little demand for female legislators, with a prevailing attitude in many countries that men make better political leaders. Although this view is most evident among older less educated citizens, it is sufficiently echoed by younger and better educated women. Support for the women’s movement in Eastern and Central Europe appears to be for a non-feminist, maternalist movement; men and women generally believe that the role of homemaker and mother is essential to a woman’s happiness.Less
This chapter examines the demand for women in the legislatures of post-communist Central and Eastern Europe. There is currently little demand for female legislators, with a prevailing attitude in many countries that men make better political leaders. Although this view is most evident among older less educated citizens, it is sufficiently echoed by younger and better educated women. Support for the women’s movement in Eastern and Central Europe appears to be for a non-feminist, maternalist movement; men and women generally believe that the role of homemaker and mother is essential to a woman’s happiness.
Venelin I. Ganev
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198293866
- eISBN:
- 9780191599156
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198293860.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
The semi‐presidential regime in Bulgaria is of recent origin: it was established in July 1991, when a Great National Assembly adopted a new constitution, which proclaims that ‘Bulgaria shall be a ...
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The semi‐presidential regime in Bulgaria is of recent origin: it was established in July 1991, when a Great National Assembly adopted a new constitution, which proclaims that ‘Bulgaria shall be a republic with a parliamentary form of government’; the emphasis on ‘parliamentary’ highlights the subordinate role of the president, who is elected directly by the voters for period five years. Even though the framers of the constitution deliberately created a dual structure of the executive branch, the text of the fundamental law envisages a mode of distribution of prerogatives that is heavily skewed in favour of the legislature and a cabinet accountable to the deputies. It is difficult, however, to sustain a claim that a general pattern of leadership is beginning to emerge under Bulgarian semi‐presidentialism, since the country has only had two presidents under its new constitution; the closest to a valid generalization which may be ventured in the light of the evidence is that, while parliament enjoys supremacy over law‐making and the government remains the primary site of executive decision‐making, the rapports between these two institutions and the presidency have varied dramatically, with the influence of the head of state running the gamut from almost complete exclusion to a palpable ability to shape agendas. The purpose of this chapter is to identify and analyse the ways in which constitutionally designed patterns of institutional interaction shift in response to changes in the social and economic environment rather than to chronicle events—the analysis is conceived as a chronology of the successive problems with which political actors had to cope. The three sections of the chapter are: Constitutional Balance of Power; Presidential/Parliamentary Relations; and Conclusion.Less
The semi‐presidential regime in Bulgaria is of recent origin: it was established in July 1991, when a Great National Assembly adopted a new constitution, which proclaims that ‘Bulgaria shall be a republic with a parliamentary form of government’; the emphasis on ‘parliamentary’ highlights the subordinate role of the president, who is elected directly by the voters for period five years. Even though the framers of the constitution deliberately created a dual structure of the executive branch, the text of the fundamental law envisages a mode of distribution of prerogatives that is heavily skewed in favour of the legislature and a cabinet accountable to the deputies. It is difficult, however, to sustain a claim that a general pattern of leadership is beginning to emerge under Bulgarian semi‐presidentialism, since the country has only had two presidents under its new constitution; the closest to a valid generalization which may be ventured in the light of the evidence is that, while parliament enjoys supremacy over law‐making and the government remains the primary site of executive decision‐making, the rapports between these two institutions and the presidency have varied dramatically, with the influence of the head of state running the gamut from almost complete exclusion to a palpable ability to shape agendas. The purpose of this chapter is to identify and analyse the ways in which constitutionally designed patterns of institutional interaction shift in response to changes in the social and economic environment rather than to chronicle events—the analysis is conceived as a chronology of the successive problems with which political actors had to cope. The three sections of the chapter are: Constitutional Balance of Power; Presidential/Parliamentary Relations; and Conclusion.
Ania Van Der Meer Krok‐Paszkowska
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198293866
- eISBN:
- 9780191599156
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198293860.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
The eight years of post‐communist democratic rule in Poland have been marked by a struggle between rival constitutional agendas, and although the institutional set‐up has remained the same as under ...
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The eight years of post‐communist democratic rule in Poland have been marked by a struggle between rival constitutional agendas, and although the institutional set‐up has remained the same as under the 1989 Roundtable Agreement (a dual executive and a dual legislature), the formal competencies and effective powers of these institutions have changed over time. There were two stages in the constitution‐making process: the round table negotiations leading to constitutional amendments, and the regular constitution‐making process. The transition to democracy was to have been gradual and controlled with a new constitution being passed before the first fully competitive parliamentary elections in 1993. Instead, democratic institutions emerged in a stepwise and piecemeal manner with political events overtaking constitutional initiatives. Minor amendments were made to the 1952 constitution in anticipation of a completely new constitution being passed relatively quickly, but when it became clear that the two houses of parliament would be unable to agree on a common draft, a stopgap constitution was passed which dealt only with executive–legislative relations. The often ambiguous provisions of this 1992 Little Constitution were interpreted by various political forces in ways that bolstered their respective institutional powers, and its passing did not lead to a less heated debate between those who wanted a ‘governing’ president and those who favoured a figurehead president with weak powers. A semi‐presidential system is in place, but its nature has been the source of institutional squabbles throughout the period considered here (1989–97), with the balance of power moving very much in favour of the prime minister. The constitution‐making process was formally completed in the summer of 1997 with the passing of the full constitution by a legislature dominated by parties with roots in the former communist regime. Its confirmation by referendum was by a narrow majority, and the numerous political parties and organizations not represented in the 1993–97 legislature have vowed to reopen negotiations on certain constitutional provisions in the next parliamentary term. The different parts of this chapter discuss the historical context, constitutional powers under the Little Constitution, political practice, and the writing of the second constitution.Less
The eight years of post‐communist democratic rule in Poland have been marked by a struggle between rival constitutional agendas, and although the institutional set‐up has remained the same as under the 1989 Roundtable Agreement (a dual executive and a dual legislature), the formal competencies and effective powers of these institutions have changed over time. There were two stages in the constitution‐making process: the round table negotiations leading to constitutional amendments, and the regular constitution‐making process. The transition to democracy was to have been gradual and controlled with a new constitution being passed before the first fully competitive parliamentary elections in 1993. Instead, democratic institutions emerged in a stepwise and piecemeal manner with political events overtaking constitutional initiatives. Minor amendments were made to the 1952 constitution in anticipation of a completely new constitution being passed relatively quickly, but when it became clear that the two houses of parliament would be unable to agree on a common draft, a stopgap constitution was passed which dealt only with executive–legislative relations. The often ambiguous provisions of this 1992 Little Constitution were interpreted by various political forces in ways that bolstered their respective institutional powers, and its passing did not lead to a less heated debate between those who wanted a ‘governing’ president and those who favoured a figurehead president with weak powers. A semi‐presidential system is in place, but its nature has been the source of institutional squabbles throughout the period considered here (1989–97), with the balance of power moving very much in favour of the prime minister. The constitution‐making process was formally completed in the summer of 1997 with the passing of the full constitution by a legislature dominated by parties with roots in the former communist regime. Its confirmation by referendum was by a narrow majority, and the numerous political parties and organizations not represented in the 1993–97 legislature have vowed to reopen negotiations on certain constitutional provisions in the next parliamentary term. The different parts of this chapter discuss the historical context, constitutional powers under the Little Constitution, political practice, and the writing of the second constitution.
Miro Cerar
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198293866
- eISBN:
- 9780191599156
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198293860.003.0012
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
In Slovenia the power of the state is divided along classical lines into a legislature, an executive and a judiciary: legislative power is exercised by the parliament, comprising a National Assembly, ...
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In Slovenia the power of the state is divided along classical lines into a legislature, an executive and a judiciary: legislative power is exercised by the parliament, comprising a National Assembly, which is the general representative house, and a National Council, which is a body representing various interests and has very limited powers; executive power is divided between the president and the government; judicial power is exercised by the ordinary courts and the Constitutional Court, which rules on the conformity of legal enactments with the constitution and the law and decides constitutional complaints and certain other matters. It is generally accepted that Slovenia has a parliamentary system in which the focus of political decision–making lies with the parliament and the government. As in most other Central and East European countries in transition, in Slovenia the formal powers of parliament remain very strong, but, unlike the pure parliamentarism that certain countries opted for, the Slovene arrangements belong more to a group that could be characterized as parliamentarism with a directly (popularly) elected (or semi‐presidential) president. The role of the president is relatively small, and is to act as the head of state, whose function or powers are mainly of a representative, initiative, and protocol nature. After an introduction discussing whether Slovenia has a parliamentary or semi‐presidential system, this chapter focuses on the actual nature and features of the position and role of the president in the context of the constitutional and political system of the Republic of Slovenia, in six further sections: National Independence and Establishment of the First President of the Republic, Parliament and Government; Historical Factors and the Events Surrounding the Formation of the Regime; The Constitutional Powers of the President, Prime Minister, and Parliament; The Nature of the Parliamentary Majority and the Relationship Between the President and the Majority; and Conclusion.Less
In Slovenia the power of the state is divided along classical lines into a legislature, an executive and a judiciary: legislative power is exercised by the parliament, comprising a National Assembly, which is the general representative house, and a National Council, which is a body representing various interests and has very limited powers; executive power is divided between the president and the government; judicial power is exercised by the ordinary courts and the Constitutional Court, which rules on the conformity of legal enactments with the constitution and the law and decides constitutional complaints and certain other matters. It is generally accepted that Slovenia has a parliamentary system in which the focus of political decision–making lies with the parliament and the government. As in most other Central and East European countries in transition, in Slovenia the formal powers of parliament remain very strong, but, unlike the pure parliamentarism that certain countries opted for, the Slovene arrangements belong more to a group that could be characterized as parliamentarism with a directly (popularly) elected (or semi‐presidential) president. The role of the president is relatively small, and is to act as the head of state, whose function or powers are mainly of a representative, initiative, and protocol nature. After an introduction discussing whether Slovenia has a parliamentary or semi‐presidential system, this chapter focuses on the actual nature and features of the position and role of the president in the context of the constitutional and political system of the Republic of Slovenia, in six further sections: National Independence and Establishment of the First President of the Republic, Parliament and Government; Historical Factors and the Events Surrounding the Formation of the Regime; The Constitutional Powers of the President, Prime Minister, and Parliament; The Nature of the Parliamentary Majority and the Relationship Between the President and the Majority; and Conclusion.
Jeffrey Lewis
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- February 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199283958
- eISBN:
- 9780191603297
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199283958.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
The EU’s Council of Ministers increasingly resembles an upper legislative house in a bicameral system more than any international organization. But the EU still gives far more power to ...
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The EU’s Council of Ministers increasingly resembles an upper legislative house in a bicameral system more than any international organization. But the EU still gives far more power to territorially-based interests at the Council level than do federal systems in the US or Germany. The Council also blurs legislative and executive powers in a unique way, and this ambiguity is not getting any clearer — the Council increasingly exhibits some common legislative dynamics, but is also maintaining traditions as a consensus-oriented diplomatic body.Less
The EU’s Council of Ministers increasingly resembles an upper legislative house in a bicameral system more than any international organization. But the EU still gives far more power to territorially-based interests at the Council level than do federal systems in the US or Germany. The Council also blurs legislative and executive powers in a unique way, and this ambiguity is not getting any clearer — the Council increasingly exhibits some common legislative dynamics, but is also maintaining traditions as a consensus-oriented diplomatic body.
Scott Morgenstern and Luigi Manzetti
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- April 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199256372
- eISBN:
- 9780191602368
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199256373.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
This chapter examines how similar institutions in 19th century Latin America and the United States took different paths in terms of their fight against corruption and development of oversight ...
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This chapter examines how similar institutions in 19th century Latin America and the United States took different paths in terms of their fight against corruption and development of oversight institutions by the end of the 20th century. The divergent paths taken by these two countries resulted from differences in their legislatures’ motives and the courts’ willingness to check and counter executive action. A long continuous period of democratic rule is also essential to developing institutions and attacking corruption. While this occurred in the US, Argentina’s turbulent democratic experience stunted the development of a professional legislature capable of restraining executive abuses and corruption.Less
This chapter examines how similar institutions in 19th century Latin America and the United States took different paths in terms of their fight against corruption and development of oversight institutions by the end of the 20th century. The divergent paths taken by these two countries resulted from differences in their legislatures’ motives and the courts’ willingness to check and counter executive action. A long continuous period of democratic rule is also essential to developing institutions and attacking corruption. While this occurred in the US, Argentina’s turbulent democratic experience stunted the development of a professional legislature capable of restraining executive abuses and corruption.
William Cornish, J Stuart Anderson, Ray Cocks, Michael Lobban, Patrick Polden, and Keith Smith
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199258819
- eISBN:
- 9780191718151
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199258819.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Legal History
The Oxford History of the Laws of England: Volume XI 1820-1914 English Legal System is one of three volumes devoted to that period of relative peace across Europe running from the defeat ...
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The Oxford History of the Laws of England: Volume XI 1820-1914 English Legal System is one of three volumes devoted to that period of relative peace across Europe running from the defeat of Napoleon to the terrible war against the two Kaisers. Volume XI is devoted mainly to: the sources of English law; the intellectual frameworks and institutions within which they were understood; the constitutional arrangements for the legislature; central and local executives; and the judicial system, this last providing the crucial core from which professional lawyers operated. Detailed footnoting to historical sources and literature occurs in the course of the narrative. Each volume has Tables of Cases and of Statutes covering the materials in that Volume. Volume XI also includes a Names Index and a Subject Index for the volume.Less
The Oxford History of the Laws of England: Volume XI 1820-1914 English Legal System is one of three volumes devoted to that period of relative peace across Europe running from the defeat of Napoleon to the terrible war against the two Kaisers. Volume XI is devoted mainly to: the sources of English law; the intellectual frameworks and institutions within which they were understood; the constitutional arrangements for the legislature; central and local executives; and the judicial system, this last providing the crucial core from which professional lawyers operated. Detailed footnoting to historical sources and literature occurs in the course of the narrative. Each volume has Tables of Cases and of Statutes covering the materials in that Volume. Volume XI also includes a Names Index and a Subject Index for the volume.
