Explaining electoral volatility in Central and Eastern Europe : a party organizational approach

Abstract

How can electoral volatility in the new European democracies be explained? This book proposes an institutionally embedded framework to explain voters’ choice in six Central and Eastern European countries. Such an approach illustrates how political parties can influence the electoral environment in which they are active. As party organizations create effective gates of communication with the electorate, political parties can use them to stabilize their electorates. This study argues and tests that party organization can contribute to the creation of a recognizable label that voters can identify with over the medium to long term, that it may favor the creation of popular networks, and can promote and rely on recognizable candidates in consecutive elections. In order to do so, three distinctive means are employed: intra-party decision-making, membership rates, and re-nomination of incumbent MPs.