Abstract
AbstractThis article examines the impact of reforms on the outcome of Labour party leadership contests since the premiership of Tony Blair. From a theoretical perspective, these reforms are characterised by a tension between a general trend towards increasing “democratisation” of political parties and the power interests of intra-party actors. While there have been significant changes to both the nomination stage and the final ballot, the impact of these changes has to be strongly qualified. Instead of a major “democratisation” through targeted and deliberate reform measures, simple shifts in the power structure between strategic actors are more prominent among reform effects. Meanwhile, the trend towards “democratisation” in relation to the final ballot stage was largely driven by the massive membership surge since 2015, as well as low-key reform measures unconnected to handing ordinary party members more influence over the election process.
Funder
Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Political Science and International Relations,Sociology and Political Science,History
Reference52 articles.
1. Alderman, K., and N. Carter. 1991. A very Tory coup: The ousting of Mrs Thatcher. Parliamentary Affairs 44 (2): 125–139.
2. Alderman, K., and N. Carter. 1993. The Labour party leadership and deputy leadership elections of 1992. Parliamentary Affairs 46 (1): 49–65.
3. Alderman, K., and N. Carter. 1995. The Labour party leadership and deputy leadership elections of 1994. Parliamentary Affairs 48 (3): 438–455.
4. Bale, T., and P. Webb. 2014. The selection of party leaders in the UK. In The selection of political party leaders in contemporary parliamentary democracies: A comparative study, ed. J.-B. Pilet and W.P. Cross, 12–29. London: Routledge.
5. Chiru, M., et al. 2015. Explaining change in party leadership selection rules. In The Politics of Party Leadership: A Cross-National Perspective, ed. W.P. Cross and J.-B. Pilet, 31–49. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Cited by
2 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献