Democracy was once thought to be unconceivable save in terms of party democracy. Yet, It has been extensively argued - both by political comparativists and social theoreticians - that in an age of political dealignment, civil society is a key actor in the context of the crisis of legitimation...

In times of political and economic crisis, ideologies play a major role in directing anxious, angry, and despairing populations. Their reach, furthermore, is truly profound; on the one hand they embed themselves deeply in people's innermost thoughts and feelings. On the other hand, they reach...

A deep philosophical divide concerning the very foundations and purposes of civilization splits mainstream and radical environmentalists. This paper focuses on Paul Taylor's "Respect for Nature," arguing that his biocentrism is actually a disguised "civilization" or "civ-centrism." Taylor...

To date, fifteen states have implemented term limits for state legislators. Despite initial expectations that term limits would increase opportunities for female candidates by reducing the benefits associated with male incumbency advantage, the evidence indicates that term limits have not had...

Germany has a multiparty system in which coalition governments are the norm. In this paper we focus on the role that ‘pivotal' parties have played in German government formation, both nationally and across the Länder. Traditionally the main pivotal party in the German party system was the...

Studies of voting behavior in advanced industrial societies have demonstrated that voters rely on a plethora of information sources, including retrospective evaluations of parties, party identification and strong social networks, in making complex voting decisions. However, there is less...

We argue that the decline of Social Democratic parties is partly caused by the emergence of a 'second generation of new right-wing parties'. While the existing literature on new right parties has primarily seen these parties as anti-immigrant and anti-establishment, we suggest that this only...

While spatial modelers assume that citizens evaluate parties based on their policy positions, empirical research on American politics suggests that citizens' party support often drives their policy preferences, rather than vice-versa. Building on previous findings that partisanship is less...

In 2006, Washington State adopted a"Top-Two" primary system in which the top two vote getters, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election. The new primary system created a non-partisan primary but allowed candidates to describe their "political party preference". The state...