Catch-All Parties and Party-Voter Nexus in Sri Lanka

by Pradeep Peiris

Overview

This book systematically maps the evolution of the party–voter nexus of the United National Party (UNP) and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). In doing so, it argues that these parties rely mostly on a complex Web of patronage-based networks to mobilise electorates. They employ informal and highly dynamic, loosely knit networks as their organisational structures at the local level. They mainly focus on mobilising voters through local political actors rather than maintaining clear party bases and membership schemes. The study highlights the salience of personalities at the national as well as local levels in forming electoral support for the parties. These individuals exploit their economic, social, and cultural capital to mobilise the most efficient network that would strengthen their party during elections. The study also analyses the emergence of two new coalition centres from within these traditional parties, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and argues that these parties, though portraying themselves as new, have in fact retained the overall logic of the party–voter nexus by appropriating the organisational schemes and structures of their predecessors.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789811641558
Publisher:	Springer Nature Singapore
Publication date:	11/20/2021
Series:	Politics of South Asia
Edition description:	1st ed. 2022
Pages:	268
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Pradeep Peiris is Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science and Public Policy, University of Colombo, and Treasurer, Social Scientists’ Association, Sri Lanka. He was Founding Head of Social Indicator, Survey Research Arm of the Centre for Policy Alternatives and is currently the Sri Lanka Country Representative of Democracy Barometer.

Table of Contents

Dynamics of party organization at the level of the electorate.- From party organization to party mobilization.- Examining the logic and practice of voting.- Examining party allegiance.- SLPP and catch-all parties: Old wine in new bottles.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"The changing dynamics in the relationship between political parties and voters in Sri Lanka is the thematic focus of this book. The analysis is presented as a case study of Sri Lanka’s two leading parties, United National Party and Sri Lanka Freedom Party, which had remained the country’s two dominant parties until last year. The book highlights how social, economic and political changes as well as ideological shifts have impacted the nature of Sri Lanka’s party system, organisational structures of the parties, social role of political parties, and the transformation of party-voter relationship, leading to the emergence of political parties as social entities quite different from the constructions of conventional theory. At a time when Sri Lanka’s democratic structures have entered a phase of uncertainty, this book provides valuable insights into some major shifts in Sri Lanka’s political sociology during the preceding period. This work is indeed a valuable addition tothe expanding body of political science scholarship on Sri Lanka by the new generation of Sri Lankan scholars."

— Jayadeva Uyangoda, Emeritus Professor of Political Science, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka

"This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the dynamics of political parties and electoral politics in Sri Lanka. It provides new and in-depth analyses of the dominant parties, with particular attention to party organisation, electoral mobilisation, voter allegiance, and party defections at the local level."

— Kristian Stokke, Professor of Human Geography, University of Oslo, Norway