How safe is Turkey's liberal democracy? The rise to power in 2002 of the right-leaning Islamic Justice and Development Party ignited fears in the West that Turkey could no longer be relied upon to provide a buffer against the growth of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East. Once hailed by the West as a model of secularism and moderation in the Muslim world, Turkey is now seen to be under the influence of the 'creeping Islamisation' of the JDP (or AKP as it is known in Turkey). Yet to what extent has this affected the lives of Turkish citizens? Evangelia Axiarlis here explores the contribution of the JDP to civil liberties and basic freedoms, long suppressed by secular and statist Kemalist ideology, and how this has remained unexamined despite more than a decade in government. In this - the first detailed study of the policies and ideology of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdo?an's government - the author examines the extent to which the JDP has worked to improve civil life in Turkey and critically addresses whether a government built on Islamic principles can champion political reform. Exploring how Islam and democracy are neither monoliths nor mutually exclusive, this is a timely contribution to the wider understanding of political Islam.

As women increasingly play a role and gain ever greater prominence in congressional politics, they need to navigate the at times conflicting demands of loyalty to party culture, responsiveness to party leadership, political goals, and the need to get reelected. Based on extensive interviews and historical research, this book examines differences between Republican and Democratic political cultures, how these differences affect women members of Congress as they pursue agendas and seek to bolster their electability, and the effectiveness of women within an institution traditionally dominated by men.

What are the prospects of the Middle East region moving 'from a warfare to a welfare'? A group of leading scholars of the MIddle East and North Africa (political scientists, economists, sociologists, strategic analysts, and historians) adopt a common political economy approach to answer this much debated question.

This is a new single volume history of the Communist Party of Great Britain, examining the party from its foundation in 1920 to its demise in the early 1990s. Drawing on original research and a reading of specialist texts, the authors analyze the rise and fall of the party and evaluate its role on the left of British politics. While sympathetic to the ideals and commitment of many British communist activists, the book is sharply critical of much of the actual practice of the party.

Oswald Mosley has been reviled as a fascist and lamented as the lost leader of both Conservative and Labour Parties. Concerned to articulate the demands of the war generation and to pursue an agenda for economic and political modernization his ultimate rejection of existing institutions and practices led him to fascism.

This book provides up-to-date coverage of developments in British government and politics written by a team of leading experts. An indispensable reference book, it covers the entire political year and includes chapters on the constitution, government and administration, the law, Parliament, public policy, devolution, foreign policy, relations with the EU, local government, elections and public opinion, the party system, pressure politics, the media and democracy, plus a statistical appendix.

This book examines the 1990s backlash against illegal immigrants. Wroe explains why many Americans turned against immigration, looking at the origins of California's Proposition 187 and its wider political implications.

In revisiting the Popular Front some 60 years on, this work explores the link between metropolitan France and the empire at a defining moment in their history. The contributors aim to widen our understanding of the Popular Front experience and show that it represents an important watershed in French history, marking the beginning of an irreversible process of reform that was ultimately to lead to decolonization and the end of empire.

The Scottish independence debate has consequences for Scotland, British politics, the future of the UK - and internationally. In Scotland Rising, Gerry Hassan addresses the key questions in this debate with a deep dive into its history, beyond the usual references to Thatcherism, Toryism and Westminster, by analysing the relative decline of the UK, the nature of the British state, its capitalist economy and politics that underpin it. At the same time, a distinctive, autonomous Scotland has emerged beyond Nichola Sturgeon's SNP and independence that has demanded more self-government. Scotland Rising highlights the importance of culture, stories and collective voices in reshaping how people see Scotland, both in during the first referendum in 2014 and again today. This debate is of relevance to everyone in the UK, including England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Can politics and democracy liberate people from the wreckage of Westminster? And if the Scots can, could it inspire others? Scotland Rising is a must-read for anyone with an interest in the future of Scotland and the UK.

This book considers the extent to which, and in what circumstances, political parties affect public policy. It explores the regional level in Germany; using case studies in the areas of education, childcare and family, and labour market policy. In particular, the author explores whether party politicians make a difference to policies.

A major review of New Labour's foreign policy from leading experts. This book re-imagines policy thinking, away from Churchill's idea of Britain as at the intersection of 'three circles' (the English speaking world, Europe, and the Commonwealth) and towards a new conceptual model that takes into account identity, ethics and power.

A study of processes of political party formation and change in new democracies. This book argues that to understand party organizations we need to focus on politicians' electoral strategies. The framework is used to analyze political party development in the new democracies of East Asia (South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Indonesia.)

This collection of essays examines New Labour's claim to stand in the vanguard of a new form of progressive politics. By examining the ideology of New Labour, the major policy initiatives of Labour government, and the record and prospects of social democratic and progressive governments in the USA and elsewhere in Europe, the contributors attempt to disentangle the progressive and conservative aspects of New Labour politics and the possibilities for genuine progressive advance in Britain and other advanced capitalist countries.

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?

Chris Cook lifts the lid on the 'third Party;' charting their fascinating journey over the last century, from the landslide victory of 1906 under Asquith, via their descent into divisions and decline in the interwar years, to in-depth analysis of the 2010 British Election and their return to Government in the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition.

If you share the commonly-held notions about the New Right, which typically associate it with a reactionary ideology of social and economic change, then you are in for a surprise: this study - the first to be carried out from the inside - shows that, at least so far as its young members are concerned, their core values rest upon a radical agenda that is explicitly internationalist, individualist, culturally relativist and secularist. After examining the social background and political psychology of the young Libertarians, the author comes to the conclusion that in adhering to a world view that has more to do with individualism - or "property-rights anarchism"- than any form of collectivist ideology, such as Fascism; they represent the antithesis of traditional Burkean thought. For, while Conservatives have historically adhered to the authority of religion, prescription, instinct and communitarianism, Libertarians place their faith in the authority of reality, reason, mankind and capitalism. As a school whose epistemology is reason,ethics - self-interest and politics - and anarcho-capitalism, they represent, so the author argues, an important post-modern paradigm shift in both Conservative thought and activism.

The shortest-serving prime minister in history. The first former leader to lose their seat since 1935. An inside look at how it all went so wrong.

Liz Truss's disastrous premiership was the shortest and most chaotic in British history. In the space of just 49 days, Truss witnessed the death of the longest-reigning monarch, attempted to remould the economy, triggered a collapse in the value of Sterling and was forced on a series of embarrassing U-turns that ultimately led to her resignation. The aftershocks of her time in office are still felt today. How did she blow her opportunity so spectacularly?

Based on exclusive interviews with key aides, allies and insiders, and focusing on the critical steps that led to her demise, this gripping behind-the-scenes work of contemporary history gives the definitive account of Truss's premiership.

Too few investigations have attempted to shore up critical knowledge gaps about post-Soviet states by conducting comparative analyses of political institutions and developing rigorous methods suitable for cross-national longitudinal analysis. This book attempts to close a few of the gaps left by many previous publications in the post-Soviet field. It conducts a cross-country multiple-election examination of political party systems in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, and Ukraine in the past one and a half decades. The project measures and explains different degrees and dynamics of party system institutionalization in these five nations -- an important factor bearing on the progress of a nation toward consolidating stable democracy.

Africa's Social Cleavages and Democratization offers a comparative approach to African countries by providing an in-depth analysis of the impact of ethnicity and religion on both multiparty and post-multiparty eras. By applying different theoretical frameworks, Douglas Kimemia explores and analyzes how social cleavages have affected the growth of democracy in Africa. It is crucial to assess the relationship between democratic development and the impact of social cleavages, because multiparty politics have increased political competition, participation, transparency, and civic engagement in Africa. However, social divisions have significantly slowed the maturing of democracy, as these social cleavages have become polarizing factors, which are used by political elites for their own self-interest. As a result, politics of identity caused by competition of natural resources have led to increased conflicts and political instability in Africa. The social cleavages have also led to polarized party systems and caused adverse effects on democracy due to the highly polarized societies and political competition. Despite the many positive impacts, multiparty politics have increased the consciousness of ethnic and religious identities, leading to unhealthy political competition as evidenced by highly fragmented societies prone to conflicts and violence. Kimemia comprehensively examines different governing, electoral, and party systems in order to determine the different incentives and how social divisions shape them. This analysis helps to distinguish more permanent political structures from the merely epiphenomenal within the African political scene.

What if Clinton/Gore lost in 1992? Or won in 1992 and lost in 1996? This book is a look back at the importance of all the right moves made by Bill Clinton from the New Hampshire primary to the selection of Al Gore as his running mate to his handling of the Republican takeover of the House of Representatives in 1994-95.

For 30 years, the Labour Party was wracked by conflict over membership in the European Community, swinging back and forth, pro and anti, when in and out of office. It was a conflict that helped keep the party in opposition for 18 years until it abandoned its socialist basis under New Labor. As a journalist and European Union official, Roger Broad knew many of the major and minor players and brings this experience to bear.

In 1994, the Republican Party won control of the House of Representatives for the first time since 1954 and the Senate for the first time since 1986, bringing to an end the longest uninterrupted period of single party rule in the entire history of the United States Congress. In this text, scholars from Britain and the United States document these developments and evaluate their significance. They aim to answer the following questions: what political messages did the 1994 election results carry?; how significant were the institutional changes introduced?; how distinctive was Newt Gingrich's style and strategy?; how conservative was the legislation enacted by the 104th Congress?; how in the course of a single Congress was President Bill Clinton able to evolve from political irrelevant to major policy player?; how were despondent congressional Democrats able to recover to play an important role in shaping legislative outcomes?; are there many similarities with the Republican Congress which faced President Harry Truman in the 1940s?; and what is the significance of the 104th Congress for the future development of this complex institution and the governing of America.

Political Branding Strategies tells the story of branding by the Australian Labor Party across seven years and three brands - Kevin07, The Real Julia and that of the party. Employing a new framework to understand and evaluate branding, the book offers lessons for practitioners, researchers and citizens in democracies everywhere.

The Party of Democratic Socialism is wrongly stigmatized as polarizing German politics on the left. In fact, Oswald argues, the PDS is East Germany's contribution to the regionalized pluralism of united Germany's party system. Although initially marginalized as the successor of East Germany's SED, the PDS legitimized itself by combining eastern regionalism, a left-socialist identity, and political ambition. The PDS has become an acceptable partner in center-left parties in eastern state governments, in stark contrast to its continuing irrelevance in West Germany. While its earlier exclusion was justified by portraying the PDS as crypto-communist, the integration strategies of the late 1990s were supported by modernization theorists recognizing the party's contribution to the integration of post-unification Germany.

An executive summary of the first decade of post-unification German politics, Oswald's book offers a precise interpretation of the learning processes within the PDS. It also provides a close analysis of the disputes within the PDS characterizing the party as a political subculture in which East Germans could come to terms with the ruptures of their history and their biographies while at the same time finding a role in the politics and society of united Germany.