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Spain: Building a Parties State in a New Democracy

Ian Holliday

in Political Parties in Advanced Industrial Democracies

Spain has made a number of experiments with democracy, but only since the mid‐1970s has this been successful. At that time, strenuous efforts were made to ensure that political parties would come ... More

Spain has made a number of experiments with democracy, but only since the mid‐1970s has this been successful. At that time, strenuous efforts were made to ensure that political parties would come forward, and as a result the new democracy had two key aspects: the creation of synthetic parties (in the sense that they are supported more from above than below), and the building of a parties state. The introductory part of the chapter discusses these changes and also has a section looking at the institutional framework that had such a shaping effect on party politics; this discusses the electoral system, and the rules governing parliamentary group organization and party finance. The next three sections cover the same topics as those in the other country case studies in the book, and examine party legitimacy (party membership, electoral turnout and volatility, popular assessments, party–voter ties, and evaluating party legitimacy), party organizational strength (parliamentary party organization, mass party organization, party finance, ‘goods in kind’ received by parties, and evaluating party organizational strength), and the systemic functionality of parties (governance, political recruitment and patronage, interest articulation and aggregation, political participation, political communication and education, and evaluating the systemic functionality of parties). The concluding section assesses the viability of Spain's parties state and gives a comparative analysis of its experience of democracy.Less

Party Decline in the Parties State? The Changing Environment of German Politics

Susan E. Scarrow

in Political Parties in Advanced Industrial Democracies

The 1949 (West) German Basic Law established a system of party‐based democracy that has now endured for more than half a century, yet today's political system is not identical to that of earlier ... More

The 1949 (West) German Basic Law established a system of party‐based democracy that has now endured for more than half a century, yet today's political system is not identical to that of earlier years. Since the beginning of the 1980s, new party alternatives have made coalition politics harder to manage, the established parties have lost votes and members, and waning public support for all the parties has drawn unfavourab1e attention to the parties’ entrenched positions. These changes grew more pronounced in the 1990s, exacerbated, though not caused, by German unification, and developments reached a new stage in 1998, when one of the new parties of the 1980s, the Greens, became a party of government—an event made possible at least as much by the transformation of the Green Party itself as by a revolution in German politics. Nevertheless, despite the recent challenges to traditional political patterns, Germany remains very much a parties state, with parties still serving as the central mechanisms for political linkage and political decision‐making, and the same big parties being the principal players in state and federal coalition politics. The introductory sections discuss German parties and political institutions; the next three sections cover the same topics as the other country case studies in the book, and examine party legitimacy, party organizational strength (finance, staffing, members, mass media, parties in eastern Germany), and party functionality (in governance, interest articulation and aggregation, political participation, political recruitment and patronage, and political communication and education).Less

Negotiating Protection: Illegal Immigration and Party Machines

Lisa Rose Mar

in Brokering Belonging: Chinese in Canada's Exclusion Era, 1885-1945

One of the most curious aspects of anti-Chinese policies was officials’ practice of hiring immigrant Chinese interpreters, thus foiling exclusionary laws. The clash of two titans, Yip On and David ... More

One of the most curious aspects of anti-Chinese policies was officials’ practice of hiring immigrant Chinese interpreters, thus foiling exclusionary laws. The clash of two titans, Yip On and David Lew, shows how political alliances across racial lines compromised enforcement of anti-Chinese immigration policies. The study of interpreters and the politics through which they won, held, and lost their posts reveals a new understanding of how immigration policy was made. As an ethnic collaborator, the interpreter engaged in policy-making from a distinctive position. He had a duty to carry out the mandates of Parliament, but he gained political leadership from supporters who viewed anti-Chinese laws as illegitimate.Less

Maintaining the Family Interest

Elaine Chalus

in Elite Women in English Political Life c.1754-1790

This chapter discusses women's contributions to family interests by exploring the nature of familial politics and the kinds of socio-political activities that women could engage in. It argues that ... More

This chapter discusses women's contributions to family interests by exploring the nature of familial politics and the kinds of socio-political activities that women could engage in. It argues that women need to be seen as fully functioning members of successful political family units. They were frequently involved in election-specific socializing (some, like visiting with voters' wives, sex-specific), in formal as well as informal canvassing, in making (or granting) politicized patronage requests, and in administering and managing people and political interests. Personal and family concerns outweighed ideological considerations for most, but not all, women.Less

Reserved Seats, Patriarchy, and Patronage in Morocco

James N. Sater

in The Impact of Gender Quotas

This chapter addresses the impact of reserved seats in Morocco. Implemented in the 2002 and 2007 electoral cycles, these measures account for most of the women elected to parliament. To categorize ... More

This chapter addresses the impact of reserved seats in Morocco. Implemented in the 2002 and 2007 electoral cycles, these measures account for most of the women elected to parliament. To categorize the women benefiting from quotas, James N. Sater draws on two sets of data: an original questionnaire to reveal the educational and class backgrounds of female MPs and data from candidate nomination lists and news coverage to uncover their political status as party loyalists and their links to prominent male leaders. The evidence suggests that dynamics of political patronage play a major role in shaping who gains access to parliament, as illustrated by the elite backgrounds and political connections of quota women. Quota women’s ties to elite networks may affect their willingness to identify with women as group, shaping broader prospects for women’s empowerment.Less

The Spoils: Politics and Black Mobility

Eric S. Yellin

in Racism in the Nation's Service: Government Workers and the Color Line in Woodrow Wilson's America

This chapter discusses political patronage and how essential it was to black rights and mobility in Republican Washington. The job security of African American civil servants depended upon a ... More

This chapter discusses political patronage and how essential it was to black rights and mobility in Republican Washington. The job security of African American civil servants depended upon a Republican patronage network of black and white politicians born during Reconstruction. Patronage was more than a party scheme for black Americans; it represented the right to a decent livelihood and social mobility. Black men and women worked hard to succeed in federal offices, and they managed their political affiliations carefully and skillfully to ensure that their efforts would be rewarded. Connections to important people and politicians created a web that could keep vulnerable citizens from falling victim to the hardening bigotry in turn-of-the-century America. This chapter explores the nineteenth-century origins of those connections and their functioning into the early years of the new century. It makes apparent the political system that created black Washington's opportunities and would become the target of white progressive reformers.Less

Provincial Politics, Foreign Affairs, and Patronage: 1848–1853

in The Party of Order: The Conservatives, the State, and Slavery in the Brazilian Monarchy, 1831–1871

This chapter examines the issues of political patronage, provincial politics, and foreign affairs in Brazil during the period from 1848 to 1853. It describes the provincial political milieu of the ... More

This chapter examines the issues of political patronage, provincial politics, and foreign affairs in Brazil during the period from 1848 to 1853. It describes the provincial political milieu of the mid-century, discusses the costs and contradictions of political consolidation, and evaluates the local impact of the looming foreign-policy crises, particularly the African slave trade. This chapter also considers the failure of the saquaremas to resolve the conflicts between the orderly and ordering state they envisioned, the intervention of the emperor and the state's abuse in the hands of violent and competitive provincial oligarchies and the associated system of patronage and spoils.Less

The People of the Curuá River: Black Rural Protest and the Vargas Era in Amazonia, 1921–1945

Oscar de la Torre

in The People of the River: Nature and Identity in Black Amazonia, 1835-1945

In 1921, the village of Pacoval, located not far from Santarém on the northern shore of the Amazon River, was in turmoil. In August the state government sent a special envoy to ascertain if the ... More

In 1921, the village of Pacoval, located not far from Santarém on the northern shore of the Amazon River, was in turmoil. In August the state government sent a special envoy to ascertain if the purchase and demarcation of Brazil nut groves were being done by the book and whether permitting its privatization was a wise policy. The protests that ensued represented a new episode in the history of black struggles for citizenship in post-emancipation Brazil, and this chapter analyzes three of their core elements. First, the Pacovalenses presented themselves as “the people of the Curuá” River and fought to keep it “free,” locating the rights of citizenship yet again in the natural landscape. Second, they tried to protect the networks of economic and political patronage that they had built since the time of slavery, which had provided a precarious but real degree of institutional leverage. Finally, in their encounters with public authorities the black peasants also portrayed themselves as “good Brazilians,” a nativist claim that mirrored Afro-Brazilian discourses in other states in those years.Less

Politics, Patronage, and Paper: Books and Broadsides as Political Objects

Joshua Teplitsky

in Prince of the Press: How One Collector Built History's Most Enduring and Remarkable Jewish Library

This chapter examines how David Oppenheim used his courtly connections for his own political struggles and interventions on behalf of others. He continued to purchase books himself, but many Jews ... More

This chapter examines how David Oppenheim used his courtly connections for his own political struggles and interventions on behalf of others. He continued to purchase books himself, but many Jews found that they had much to gain by giving him books as presents. These books-as-gifts came from as far away as Jerusalem and as near as local communities in Moravia, but all were given in the hopes that Oppenheim's favor might be converted into a form of political patronage. Oppenheim's world of favor and families represents an important instance of this widespread political culture, one that was conducted by Court Jews as much as by princely courtiers. In this system, patronage and clientage were not simply vital elements of individual fortunes or the callously corrupt, but were decisive for the operations of an entire structure of governance, securing the welfare of its constituents and the power of its leaders.Less

The Political Economy of Fiscal Institutions and Macroeconomic Management in Sudan

Kabbashi M. Suliman

in Institutions and Macroeconomic Policies in Resource-Rich Arab Economies

This chapter draws on the literature on historical institutionalism and distributive politics, combining qualitative and quantitative information from Sudan’s territorial economic structures, to ... More

This chapter draws on the literature on historical institutionalism and distributive politics, combining qualitative and quantitative information from Sudan’s territorial economic structures, to highlight the evolution of the fiscal and political institutions and indicate their impact on fiscal policy and macroeconomic outcomes. The results show that the inherited colonial fiscal institutions, underpinned by cotton production partnership, significantly determined Sudan’s economic development path after independence and facilitated the incorporation of rural areas and communities into the national economy. However, the greater centralization of power to boost the elites’ legitimacy, including the prioritization of public expenditures on entrenched and inefficient political patronage networks, have not only undermined the macroeconomic management role of the fiscal policy, but also triggered a process of territorial fragmentation that escalated into open civil wars and eventually led to the breakup of the state. The policy implications of these findings are outlined.Less

Without Fear or Favor

Elton Skendaj

in Creating Kosovo: International Oversight and the Making of Ethical Institutions

This chapter compares the two effective bureaucracies in Kosovo: the customs service and the police force. International organizations insulated these bureaucracies from political patronage by ... More

This chapter compares the two effective bureaucracies in Kosovo: the customs service and the police force. International organizations insulated these bureaucracies from political patronage by hiring, training, and promoting competent employees. Because they owed loyalty to the bureaucracy and not to political leaders or parties, the employees in these organizations valued performance. This enabled the professionalization of the bureaucracies. The socialization of officials into the professional norms of bureaucracy started through strategic calculation, and it continued with role-playing and normative suasion as employees learned appropriate behavior in the organization. With time, employees internalized such rules and acted on them habitually.Less

Introduction

Jaime M. Pensado

in Rebel Mexico: Student Unrest and Authoritarian Political Culture During the Long Sixties

This introduction situates the importance of the book within the current literatures on student culture, Cold War violence, and political patronage in Mexico.

Confirming U.S. Attorneys

Christina L. Boyd, Michael J. Nelson, Ian Ostrander, and Ethan D. Boldt

in The Politics of Federal Prosecution

In this chapter, we explore the selection and appointment of federal prosecutors. We review the historical development of the Senate confirmation process for U.S. Attorneys, emphasizing that these ... More

In this chapter, we explore the selection and appointment of federal prosecutors. We review the historical development of the Senate confirmation process for U.S. Attorneys, emphasizing that these officials are a rare federal office in which all three branches of government play a role in the staffing process. We then turn to an empirical examination of how politics plays an important role in determining whether U.S. Attorney nominations are confirmed by the Senate as well as how long it takes to receive confirmation. We reveal wide disparities in the extent to which Democrat and Republican Administrations have valued demographic diversity among federal prosecutors. Moreover, we demonstrate that, while presidents nearly always succeed in their nominations of U.S. Attorneys, confirmations are speedier and more likely to be successful when the president and Senate are ideologically aligned and when the president enjoys widespread popularity.Less

Decentralization and Accountability in Post-Socialist Cambodia and Vietnam

Garry Rodan and Caroline Hughes

in The Politics of Accountability in Southeast Asia: The Dominance of Moral Ideologies

International development actors such as the World Bank have enthusiastically endorsed decentralization as a way of boosting accountability and responsiveness, by unleashing local initiative and ... More

International development actors such as the World Bank have enthusiastically endorsed decentralization as a way of boosting accountability and responsiveness, by unleashing local initiative and energy for service delivery at local level, while reigning in the potential for corruption, inefficiency, and abuse of power. As such, decentralization reforms potentially constitute an important aspect of the new accountability agenda. However, since the 1990s, authoritarian regimes in Cambodia and Vietnam have faced new tensions arising from the embrace of market relationships and the decline in the appeal of socialist ideology. In both countries the ruling parties have used administrative and political decentralization as a means to promote moral ideologies of accountability that serve as a prop to their continued rule. The imposition of moral ideologies in which greed is decried as the source of corruption and conflict has been effective in a context where the political regime precludes more assertive positions on the part of villagers.Less

Federal Prosecution Yesterday and Today

Christina L. Boyd, Michael J. Nelson, Ian Ostrander, and Ethan D. Boldt

in The Politics of Federal Prosecution

What function do federal prosecutors play in the modern political system, and how has this role changed over time? In this chapter, we explore the historical evolution of federal prosecutors and the ... More

What function do federal prosecutors play in the modern political system, and how has this role changed over time? In this chapter, we explore the historical evolution of federal prosecutors and the DOJ (and its predecessors) and review the organization of the modern DOJ. We provide evidence that politics and the administration of federal justice have always been tightly intertwined. Moreover, the enlargement of federal law since the Civil War has brought with it the an increase in the size of the federal prosecutorial machine, the DOJ, and the role of the U.S. Attorney General. Using data from the DOJ, we illustrate the growth of the federal prosecutorial machine and discuss its ramifications for the role of the U.S. Attorney in the modern political system.Less