Party Systems in Post-Soviet Countries: A Comparative Study of Political Institutionalization in the Baltic States, Russia, and Ukraine

by A. Meleshevich

Overview

This book conducts a comparative analysis of political institutions and develops rigorous methods suitable for cross-national longitudinal analysis. An examination of political party systems in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, and Ukraine shows striking differences of degrees and dynamics of political institutionalization in the five nations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781403974495
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	06/08/2007
Edition description:	2007
Pages:	262
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.04(d)

About the Author

ANDREY A. MELESHEVICH is a professor of law and politics at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Ukraine.

Table of Contents

Introduction PART I: MEASURING POLITICAL INSTITUTIONALIZATION IN THE BALTIC STATES, RUSSIA, AND UKRAINE Conceptual Framework and Operational Indicators of Political Institutionalization Autonomy of the Party System: Recruitment into the Legislature Autonomy of the Party System: Patterns of Cabinet Formation Autonomy of the Party System: Regional Strength of Party Identification Stability of the Party System Measuring Political Institutionalization: Conclusion PART II: EXPLAINING POLITICAL INSTITUTIONALIZATION IN THE BALTIC STATES, RUSSIA, AND UKRAINE The Role of the Old Communist Elites during the Formative Stage of the Party System Executive-Legislative Relations and the Party System Political Consequences of Electoral and Party Laws "Parties of Power" and the Party System Conclusion

Editorial Reviews

"A pathbreaking study that broadens our conceptual and empirical understanding of the comparative development of the party systems in five countries. Applying a sophisticated theoretical methodology, the work fills a major gap in the literature on the inter-relationship between institutions, elections and political outcomes."

- Richard Sakwa, University of Kent at Canterbury"This volume provides a much-needed comparative analysis of party systems in five post-Soviet states. The analysis benefits from being theoretically informed, conceptually rigorous and systematic in its approach. It also contains a wealth of empirical data that will undoubtedly be of considerable use to other scholars. Meleshevich's systematic comparative approach to party-system institutionalization distinguishes it from much previous research and marks it out as a milestone in the field of post-Soviet studies. This work will undoubtedly become a point of reference for scholars of post-Soviet party systems in years to come, and it will be essential reading for students of party systems in the post-communist world and beyond."

- Sarah Birch, Department of Government, University of Essex"This book is a very interesting study of party system institutionalization in post- communist politics. Unlike many contemporary studies, Andrey Meleshevich fully incorporates the existing general comparative literature on party-system institutionalization and uses that framework to shed light on how party systems are emerging in the countries of the former Soviet Union. This is truly a comparative work,andcontributes greatly to integrating the study of post-communist politics with mainstream comparative politics." - John Ishiyama, Professor of Political Science, Truman University

From the Publisher