| ID | 127760 |
| Title Proper | Party system institutionalization in Ghana and Senegal |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Osei, Anja |
| Publication | 2013. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This paper presents a comparative case study of party system institutionalization in Ghana and Senegal. Both countries experienced a democratic change in government in the year 2000, but while positive development has continued in Ghana, democratic quality in Senegal decreased over time. Can the concept of party institutionalization help to explain this diverging development? Four dimensions of party system institutionalization are systematically compared: regularity, social roots, legitimacy, and party organization. It is found that party competition in Ghana is characterized by high stability and a low number of parties. The major parties are organized throughout the country and have definable support bases with deep historical roots. They give orientation to voters and are perceived as legitimate actors. In Senegal, in contrast, the party system is fluid and less predictable. Parties are not structured along social cleavages and many of them are weakly organized and highly personalistic. In summary, the case studies support the assumption that an institutionalized, well-structured party system in which relevant social cleavages are translated into electoral alternatives is positively related to democratic quality. |
| `In' analytical Note | Journal of Asian and African Studies Vol.48, No.5; Oct.2013: p.577-593 |
| Journal Source | Journal of Asian and African Studies Vol.48, No.5; Oct.2013: p.577-593 |
| Key Words | Cleavages ; Democratization ; Ethnicity ; Legitimacy ; Party organization ; Democracy ; Ghana ; Senegal ; Party system institutionalization |