The Dynamics of Party System Change

Abstract

In the past decade the dominant theme of comparative electoral research has changed from explaining the stability of partisan alignments to explaining the dynamics of partisan change. Citizens have presented new demands and new challenges to the established parties, and the evidence of substantial partisan change is now obvious (Dalton et al., 1984; Daalder and Mair, 1983). Party systems are more fractionalized; there has been a breakup of many established parties and a growing number of new parties. Fluctuations in voting results also increased. Voting in most European democracies is now characterized by higher levels of partisan volatility at the aggregate and individual levels (Crewe and Denver, 1985). In several nations, popular attachments to political parties generally weakened and discussions of the crisis of party systems became commonplace.