The year 2012 was the 30th anniversary of William H. Riker’s modern classic Liberalism against populism (1982) and is marked by the present special issue. In this introduction, we seek to identify some core elements and evaluate the current status of the Rikerian research program and its...

The paper communicates the essence of the findings of a study influencing participation in May Day demonstrations in Copenhagen 1980-2013. Political factors seem irrelevant for predicting the level of turn-out at May Day demonstrations. The most important factors are the weather conditions.

The note briefly outlines a new model for the explanation of US presidential elections, founded on (a) recent economic growth and (b) a measure of what may be called “’the cost of ruling.” The former is based in changes in real disposable income for the period following a mid-term...

We investigate the possible interaction effects that the extent of property rights protection and separation of powers in a political system have on economic growth. Using analysis of panel data from more than countries over the period 1970-2010 we find that the growth effects of property rights...

All democratic systems are theoretically open to so-called election inversions, i.e., instances wherein a majority of the decision makers prefer one alternative but where the actual outcome is another. The paper examines the complex 1975 Danish government formation process, which involved five...

The article examines one of the few examples of a political philosopher, who has attempted to integrate a study of heraldry into his philosophical system, namely Thomas Hobbes (1588 1679) in his classic, Leviathan (1651). The article argues, that much of what Hobbes had to say of heraldry was...