Southeast European politics cannot be understood without taking ethnic minorities into account. This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the politics of ethnic minorities, examining both their political parties and issues of social distance, migration, and ethnic boundaries, as well as issues related to citizenship and integration. Coverage includes detailed analyses of Hungarian minority parties in Romania, Albanian minority parties in Macedonia, Serb minority parties in Croatia, Bosniak minority parties in Serbia, and various minority parties in Montenegro, as well as the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, a largely Turkish party, in Bulgaria.

Originally published in 1943, this book presents the content of five speeches delivered by the British Labour politician Herbert Morrison (1888-1965). The speeches all concern themselves with his ideas for British post-war policy and cover the following areas: 'Social and economic policy'; 'The British Commonwealth'; 'The future of exports'; 'World politics'; and 'The state and industry'. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in Morrison and political history.

The conventional wisdom of economic voting theory argues that a nation's economic performance drives electoral outcomes. Therefore, voters will hold an administration accountable for its economic stewardship. Austin Hart challenges the simplicity of this notion, drawing on cognitive-psychological research on priming to demonstrate that the intensity of voters' exposure to economic campaign messages systematically conditions the strength of the economic vote. However, this study goes further than simply saying 'campaigns matter'. Here, we learn that candidates who control the campaign narrative can capitalize on favorable economic conditions or - contrary to the predictions of conventional theory - overcome unfavorable conditions. Although the aim is not to dismiss the importance of structural variables in the study of elections, Hart shows that the choices candidates make about what to say and how often shape election outcomes in ways that cannot be explained by contextual or institutional forces alone.

Contemporary Western societies are witnessing ground-breaking social, economic and political changes at an accelerating pace. These changes are challenging the way democracy works and the role that political elites play in this system of government. Using a theoretical and empirical approach, this volume argues that political elites are urged to develop new strategies in order to achieve interest aggregation, to safeguard collective action, and to maintain elite autonomy and stability. The adaptive capacities of political elites are assessed through case studies, comparative and longitudinal analyses of their social structure, their recruitment patterns, and their attitudes. The book includes contributions from reputable scholars in the field of elite research and specialists on individual political systems across Europe and the US. It provides an analytical framework demonstrating that political elites are inevitable and potentially able to respond successfully to varying challenges. The book will be of key interest to scholars and students of political elites, democracy, comparative politics, political participation and European Politics.

Offering the first in-depth analysis of the relationship between populism and political meritocracy, this book asks why states with meritocratic systems such as Singapore and China have not faced the populist challenge to the extent that liberal-democratic states have. Is political meritocracy immune to populism? Or does it fan its flames? Exploring this puzzle, the authors argue that political meritocracies are simultaneously immune and susceptible to populism. The book maintains that political meritocracy's focus on the intellect, social skills, and most importantly virtue of political leaders can reduce the likelihood of populist actors rising to power; that meritocracy's promise of upward mobility for the masses can work against elitism; and that rule by the 'meritorious' can help avoid crises, diminishing the political opening for populism. However, it also shows that meritocracy does little to eliminate grievances around political, cultural, and social inequality, instead entrenching a hierarchy - an allegedly 'just' one. The book ultimately argues that the more established the system of political meritocracy becomes, the more it opens the door to populist resentment and revolt. Pitched primarily to scholars and postgraduate students in political theory, comparative politics, Asian studies, and political sociology, this book fills an important scholarly gap.

The Dictionary of Labour Biography has an outstanding reputation as a reference work for the study of nineteenth and twentieth century British history. Volume XIV maintains this standard of original and thorough scholarship. Each entry is written by a specialist drawing on an array of primary and secondary sources. The biographical essays engage with recent historiographical developments in the field of labour history. The scope of the volume emphasises the ethnic and national diversity of the British labour movement and neglected political traditions.

Has China become just another capitalist country in a socialist cloak? Will the Chinese Communist Party's rule survive the next ten years of modernization and globalization? Frank Pieke investigates these conundrums in this fascinating account of how government officials are trained for placement in the Chinese Communist Party. Through in-depth interviews with staff members and aspiring trainees, he shows that while the Chinese Communist Party has undergone a radical transformation since the revolutionary years under Mao, it is still incumbent upon cadres, who are selected through a highly rigorous process, to be ideologically and politically committed to the party. It is the lessons learnt through their teachers that shape the political and economic decisions they will make in power. The book offers unique insights into the structure and the ideological culture of the Chinese government, and how it has reinvented itself over the last three decades as a neo-socialist state.

This book studies the role of emotions, such as anger, anxiety, and enthusiasm, across various domains of political behavior in Turkey. The author considers how emotions affect evaluations of leadership performance, levels of intolerance, likelihood of following and participating in politics, perceived threats from terrorism, and electoral decisions, including vote choice. Using a nationally representative survey and experimental data, this study empirically analyses the causal associations among the primary factors explaining the Turkish electorate's political attitudes and behaviours. The book will be of particular interest to academics, university students, and policymakers seeking to learn more about contemporary Turkish politics amid the recent political and social turmoil that has affected all parts of this society.

*** 'Few people walk the line of thought provoking and laugh out loud funny like Geoff Norcott.' - Romesh Ranganathan 'Where Did I Go Right? is sharp, considered, insightful, and helped me make sense of "the other side". And because Geoff Norcott is so funny, it unfortunately means I can't dismiss his views entirely. It's so important to have a friend you can disagree with but still admire and Geoff can be that friend to you!' - Katherine Ryan "I've always thought the benefit of having batsh*t parents is it increases the chance of you growing up funny. It's certainly worked for Geoff Norcott." - David Baddiel "Brave... and vividly evoked. [...] 'How the left lost me' is a phrase that should haunt Kier Starmer et al. Looking at the collapse of the 'red wall', at the last election, there do seem to be a lot of disgruntled Geoffs out there." - The Telegraph "While I stand firmly at the other end of the political spectrum, it provided fascinating and well-considered insights into how the half think and, as such, should be read by both Reds and Blues." - Love Reading UK 'Voting Conservative is like buying a James Blunt album: loads of people have done it, but weirdly you never meet them ...' Comedian Geoff Norcott should have been Labour through and through. He grew up on a council estate, both of his parents were disabled, and his Dad was a Union man. So, how was it that he grew up to vote Tory? In this courageously honest and provocative memoir, Geoff unpicks his working-class upbringing and his political journey from left to right. Raised by a fierce matriarch and a maverick father on a South London council estate where they filmed scenes for The Bill, Geoff spends his youth attempting to put out kitchen fires with aerosols and leaping in and out of industrial skips. But as he reaches adolescence, his political views begin to be influenced by major events including the early 90s recession, the credit crunch, and a chance encounter with Conservative PM John Major. As an adult, Geoff begins to have the gnawing feeling that the values and traditions he grew up with no longer match Labour's. And, as Brexit appears, he feels even more like a double agent operating behind enemy lines. Written with warmth, wit and often laugh-out-loud humour, Where Did I Go Right? is Geoff's attempt to understand why he ended up voting 'for the bad guys', and why blue-collared conservatism could be here to stay. Praise for Geoff Norcott: 'A mature, sharp take on modern politics' - The Sunday Times 'Gently abrasive, but that's what makes him so entertaining... with a sharp, self-knowing wit' -The Times 'Geoff Norcott genuinely has something original to say' - New European 'A refreshingly brilliant new comedic voice' - Spectator 'Norcott is an out-and-out rebel' - Express

This book explores how the multiplicity of nationalist parties across the European Union have embraced or refused the process of European integration and made it a platform for transnational coordination in the European arena. The author analyzes how opposing pro-European minority nationalist parties and Eurosceptic populist nationalist parties have diversely politicized European integration over the past three decades and engage in different patterns of Europeanization. Tracing their divergent trajectories of transnational coordination, the book examines the common challenges these opposing nationalist party families face and their systematic fragmentation in the European arena. The book offers a novel approach to understanding the conditions for the emergence of truly European nationalist party families, based on the interaction of ideological, strategic and institutional variables that underpin the Europeanization of heterogeneous nationalisms. Nationalisms in the European Arena will be of interest to students and scholars across a range of disciplines including sociology and political science. It contributes to the increasing literature on identity politics in the European Union and reveals the mechanisms behind why the European arena is adverse to the political translation and organization of domestic nationalisms as distinctive European actors.

Why have so many established political parties across Latin America collapsed in recent years? Party Brands in Crisis offers an explanation that highlights the effect of elite actions on voter behavior. During the 1980s and 1990s, political elites across the region implemented policies inconsistent with the traditional positions of their party, provoked internal party conflicts, and formed strange-bedfellow alliances with traditional rivals. These actions diluted party brands and eroded voter attachment. Without the assured support of a partisan base, parties became more susceptible to short-term retrospective voting, and voters without party attachments deserted incumbent parties when they performed poorly. Party Brands in Crisis offers the first general explanation of party breakdown in Latin America, reinforcing the interaction between elite behavior and mass attitudes.

For decades, the Louisiana political scene has been a source of interest and intrigue for scholars and casual observers alike. In recent years, the state's political, economic, and environmental challenges have drawn sustained attention from regional and national media. Observers have typically focused on Louisiana's distinctive political culture, including jungle primaries, colorful candidates, and tolerance for scandal. However, recent shifts have eroded the state's unique political character, aligning it with national political trends of partisan realignment, political polarization, and outside influence in state and local elections. The Party Is Over brings together top scholars, journalists, and policy analysts to investigate these recent shifts in institutions, politics, and policy and situate them in the context of national politics. Both accessible and thorough, the volume offers an informed and reliable foundation for those new to Louisiana's political culture and for long-time observers seeking new insights into recent developments. Contributors recognize the challenges posed by the new politics and point toward opportunities to leverage the state's cultural and economic strengths to build a better Louisiana.

Opposition political parties are vital to the functioning of democracies as they provide a representative system of the electorate while keeping ruling parties accountable. Through this important legislative role, the political system gains legitimacy. However, opposition parties across the southern African region confront many challenges in their attempts to function effectively. This, of course, raises important questions. Why is the political opposition so weak and fragmented in the region? Are the challenges largely due to internal weaknesses or state repression? How do opposition parties relate to their constituencies as well as broader civil society? In seeking to answer these questions, this volume assembled contributions from a number of prominent scholars from the region who share the experiences of their respective countries. The diversity of countries included – from the island-state of Mauritius to regional behemoth South Africa, from democratic Botswana to feudal Swaziland – allows one to draw comparative lessons about the region.

This book studies how established political parties react to the far left and far right parties that have surged in many democracies worldwide. While some of the extremist parties are being imitated in response, established parties can also choose to systematically rule out all political cooperation with them, imposing a cordon sanitaire. A third response by established parties combines these two reactions. How common are these three responses, and how do they affect far left and far right parties' electoral support? This book addresses these questions by analyzing experimental and non-experimental data from fifteen European countries since 1944. In doing so, it informs scientific and public debates about challenges to established parties, how these parties deal with these challenges, and what the consequences are for the quality of democracy in contemporary democratic societies.

In this book, Carol Mershon and Olga Shvetsova explore one of the central questions in democratic politics: how much autonomy do elected politicians have to shape and reshape the party system on their own, without the direct involvement of voters in elections? Mershon and Shvetsova's theory focuses on the choices of party membership made by legislators while serving in office. It identifies the inducements and impediments to legislators' changes of partisan affiliation, and integrates strategic and institutional approaches to the study of parties and party systems. With empirical analyses comparing nine countries that differ in electoral laws, territorial governance and executive-legislative relations, Mershon and Shvetsova find that strategic incumbents have the capacity to reconfigure the party system as established in elections. Representatives are motivated to bring about change by opportunities arising during the parliamentary term, and are deterred from doing so by the elemental democratic practice of elections.

This book questions the common understanding of party political behaviour, explaining some of the sharp differences in political behaviour through a focused case study-drawing systematically on primary and archival research-of the Australian Labor Party's political and policy directions during select periods in which it was out of office at the federal level: from 1967-72, 1975-83, and 1996-2001. Why is it that some Oppositions contest elections with an extensive array of detailed policies, many of which contrast with the approach of the government at the time, while others can be widely criticised as 'policy lazy' and opportunistic, seemingly capitulating to the government of the day? Why do some Oppositions lurch to the right, while others veer leftward? Each of these periods was, in its own way, crucial in the party's history, and each raises important questions about Opposition behaviour. The book examines the factors that shaped the overall direction in which the party moved during its time in Opposition, including whether it was oriented towards emphasising programmes traditionally associated with social democrats, such as pensions, unemployment support, and investment in public health, education, infrastructure, and publicly owned enterprises, as well as policies aimed at reducing the exploitation of workers. In each period of Opposition examined, an argument is made as to why Labor moved in a particular direction, and how this period compared to the other periods surveyed. The book rounds off with analysis of the generalisability of the conclusions drawn: how relevant are they for understanding the behaviour of other parties elsewhere in the world? Where are social democratic parties such as the ALP heading? Is Opposition an institution in decline in the Western world?

Nominally the highest decision-making body in the Chinese Communist Party, the Party Congress is responsible for determining party policy and the selection of China's leaders. Guoguang Wu provides the first analysis of how the Party Congress operates to elect Party leadership and decide Party policy, and explores why such a formal performance of congress meetings, delegate discussions, and non-democratic elections is significant for authoritarian politics more broadly. Taking institutional inconsistency as the central research question, this study presents a new theory of 'mutual contextualization' to reveal how informal politics and formal institutions interact with each other. Wu argues that despite the prevalence of informal politics behind the scenes, authoritarian politics seeks legitimization through a combination of political manipulation and the ritual mobilization of formal institutions. This ambitious book is essential reading for all those interested in understanding contemporary China, and an innovative theoretical contribution to the study of comparative politics.

This book addresses the changing electoral and political circumstances in which American political parties found themselves during the 2016 election, and the strategic adaptations this new pressure may require. The respective establishments of both major political parties have found themselves facing serious challenges. Some observers wondered if realignment was in progress, and whether the parties could survive. Both grounded in research and accessible to more than just academics, this book provides important insights into how political parties can move forward from 2016.

Charlotte P. Lee considers organizational changes taking place within the contemporary Chinese Communist Party (CCP), examining the party's renewed emphasis on an understudied but core set of organizations: party-managed training academies or 'party schools'. This national network of organizations enables party authorities to exert political control over the knowledge, skills, and careers of officials. Drawing on in-depth field research and novel datasets, Lee finds that the party school system has not been immune to broader market-based reforms but instead has incorporated many of the same strategies as actors in China's hybrid, state-led private sector. In the search for revenue and status, schools have updated training content and become more entrepreneurial as they compete and collaborate with domestic and international actors. This book draws attention to surprising dynamism located within the party, in political organizations thought immune to change, and the transformative effect of the market on China's political system.

This book explains why the level of party presidentialization varies from one country to another. It considers the effects of constitutional structures as well as the party's original features, and argues that the degree of party presidentialization varies as a function of the party's genetics.

The Green Party struck its "deal with the devil" by entering coalition with Fianna Fail in 2007. The junior partner secured control of the Environment and Energy ministries, irritating some in the larger party with its pursuit of a ban on stag hunting, the introduction of civil partnerships for same-sex couples and restrictions on planning. An unprecedented crisis in the State's finances, with an exposure of the deeply flawed Irish banking system, shook the party's grassroots and its vote collapsed in the local and European elections in June 2009. The following October, party members threatened to pull out of Government over the controversial National Asset Management Agency (Nama), while senior figures were kept in the dark about the arrival of the IMF in 2010. The Greens dropped a bombshell late that year, demanding a date for an early general election, but stayed in Government in the hope of passing key Green legislation. Controversy over revelations about then Taoiseach Brian Cowen's contacts with Sean Fitzpatrick while he was still Anglo chairman strained relationships further. A bungled reshuffle was aborted at the behest of the Greens, and the "momentous" decision to pull the plug on the Coalition was taken in January 2011. But their three-and-a-half year period in Government cost them dearly at the polls.

Remember that metaphor about the frog that slowly cooks to death in the pot of increasingly warm water? Leftists have used it for years to describe how people can accept dwindling health care, fading job opportunities, eroding racial and gender equality--as long as the loss occurs gradually. Now, with Donald Trump having slouched off to Washington, most of the mainstream media are working overtime to convince us that we can still stand the heat. Leave it to John Bellamy Foster, one of the world's outstanding radical scholars, to expose Trump for who and what he is: a neo-fascist. Just at the boiling point, Foster offers us cool logic to comprehend the system that created Trump's moral and political emergency--and to resist it. In Trump in the White House, John Bellamy Foster does what no other Trump analyst has done before: he places the president and his administration in full historical context. Foster reveals that Trump is merely the endpoint of a stagnating economic system whose liberal democratic sheen has begun to wear thin. Beneath a veneer of democracy, we see the authoritarian rule that oversees decreasing wages, anti-science and climate-change denialism, a dying public education system, and expanding prisons and military--all powered by a phony populism seething with centuries of racism that never went away. But Foster refuses to end his book in despair. Inside his analysis is a clarion call to fight back. Protests, popular demands, coalitions: everyone is needed. Change can't happen without radical, anti-capitalist politics, and Foster demonstrates that--even now, with the waters ever warming--it may yet be possible to stop the desecration of the Earth; to end endless war; to create global solidarity with all oppressed people. Could a frog do that?

Party in the Street explores the interaction between political parties and social movements in the United States. Examining the collapse of the post-9/11 antiwar movement against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, this book focuses on activism and protest in the United States. It argues that the electoral success of the Democratic Party and President Barack Obama, as well as antipathy toward President George W. Bush, played a greater role in this collapse than did changes in foreign policy. It shows that how people identify with social movements and political parties matters a great deal, and it considers the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street as comparison cases.

Party in the Street explores the interaction between political parties and social movements in the United States. Examining the collapse of the post-9/11 antiwar movement against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, this book focuses on activism and protest in the United States. It argues that the electoral success of the Democratic Party and President Barack Obama, as well as antipathy toward President George W. Bush, played a greater role in this collapse than did changes in foreign policy. It shows that how people identify with social movements and political parties matters a great deal, and it considers the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street as comparison cases.

The 2010 general election caught many by surprise as it swept away the old certainties of two-party politics. But, as Stephen Driver shows in this new book, multi-party politics had already established itself as a feature of contemporary British political life. In recent years, both Labour and the Conservatives lost their iron grip on the electorate and the Liberal Democrats emerged as a significant and credible third party force across the country. In local, devolved and European elections, smaller parties from across the ideological spectrum have been adding to the political mix.

This fluid and uncertain political scene provides a unique moment to explore the dynamics of UK political parties and the key challenges facing them as they grapple with the changing shape of politics in 21st century Britain. Key questions explored in this book include: How far have Labour and the Conservatives escaped from the shadow of Thatcherism? What turned the Liberal Democrats from a party of protest to a party of power? To what extent have green and far-right politics entered the political mainstream? What impact, if any, has devolution had on party lines across the UK?

Moreover, at a time when trust in politics has hit an all time low, political parties are facing a crisis in confidence. Membership of mainstream parties has melted away, while support for pressure groups in areas such as the environment and human rights has grown. At the same time, parties rely on hired professionals to win support among the growing number of independently-minded voters. In understanding how political parties have become much more aggressive, professionally-driven organizations, this book points to real concerns about their capacity to engage and mobilise an increasingly critical and disenchanted electorate. British politics needs strong parties, but to regain voters' trust, they need to change.