Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Direct Election of Party Heads

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Political Leaders Beyond Party Politics

  • 459 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter deals with the new way of nominating party leaders in Western democracies. The topic of leader selection has been the subject of great attention by a growing body of political science literature, with a particular focus on the effects of such changes on both intra-party power and the relationship between leaders and party affiliates. On the one hand, comparative research has shown a significant tendency towards the adoption of a more open method in nominating party candidates for public office, especially through the use of primary elections. On the other hand, in new personal parties, the leader founds and creates his party and then he is confirmed leader by means of acclamation. As a result of such trends, party heads are reinforcing their position in the organizations they lead, starting from the increase in their popular legitimation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Adler, Nancy J. 1996. Global Women Political Leaders: An Invisible History. An Increasingly Important Future. Leadership Quarterly 7 (1): 133–161.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bale, Tim, and Paul Webb. 2014. The Selection of Party Leaders in UK. In The Selection of Party Leaders in Contemporary Parliamentary Democracies, ed. Jean-Benoit Pilet and William Cross, 12–29. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barberà, Óscar, and Rodríguez J. Teruel. 2015. The Internal Consequences of Introducing Party Primaries in Spain. 65th Annual Conference of the Political Studies Association, Sheffield, March 30–April 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Biorcio, Roberto, and Paolo Natale. 2013. Politica a 5 Stelle: Idee, Storia e Strategie del Movimento di Grillo. Milan: Feltrinelli.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blondel, Jean, and Jean-Louis Thiébault. 2010. France: The Personalisation of Leadership and French Political Parties. In Political Leadership, Parties and Citizens: The Personalisation of Leadership, 141–171. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bolgherini, Silvia, and Fortunato Musella. 2010. La partecipazione. In Il Partito Democratico di Bersani. Persone, profilo, prospettive, ed. Gianfranco Pasquino and Fulvio Venturino, 103–120. Bologna: Bononia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bordignon, Fabio, and Luigi Ceccarini. 2013. Five Stars and a Cricket. Beppe Grillo Shakes Italian Politics. South European Society and Politics 18 (4): 427–449.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cain, Bruce E., Russell J. Dalton, and Susan Scarrow, eds. 2003. Democracy Transformed? Expanding Political Opportunities in Advanced Industrial Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Calise, Mauro. 2015. The Personal Party: An Analytic Framework. Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica 45 (3): 301–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Campus, Donatella. 2013. Women Political Leaders and the Media. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Carty, Kenneth R., and William Cross. 2010. Political Parties and the Practice of Brokerage Politics. In The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Politics, ed. John C. Courtney and David E. Smith, 191–207. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Castells, Manuel. 2015. Network of Outrage and Hope. Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cavalli, Luciano. 1984. Plebiscitary Democracy in the West: The Socialist Case in Italy. Florence: University of Florence Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ceasar, J. 1979. Presidential Selection: Theory and Development. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chiaramonte, Alessandro, and Vincenzo, Emanuele. 2015. Party System Volatility, Regeneration and De-institutionalization in Western Europe (1945–2015). Party Politics, published online August 25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chiru, Mihail, Anika Gauja, Sergiu Gherghina, and Juan Rodríguez-Teruel. 2015. Explaining Change in Party Leadership Selection Rules. In The Politics of Party Leadership: A Cross-national Perspective, ed. William Cross and Jean-Benoit Pilet, 62–87. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corbetta, Piergiorgio, and Elisabetta Gualmini. 2013. Il partito di Grillo. Bologna: Il Mulino.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cross, William P., and André Blais. 2012. Politics at the Centre: The Selection and Removal of Party Leaders in the Anglo Parliamentary Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Cross, William P., and Richard S. Katz, eds. 2013. The Challenges of Intra-party Democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dalton, Russell J. 2013. The Apartisan American: Dealignment and Changing Electoral Politics. New York: CQ Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dalton, Russell J., and Martin P. Wattenberg. 2000. Parties without Partisans: Political Change in Advanced Industrial Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Davis, James W. 1980. Presidential Primaries. Road to the White House. Westport: Praeger.

    Google Scholar 

  • Denham, Andrew. 2012. From Ted to Ed: Electing British Party Leaders. The Political Quarterly 83 (3): 576–584.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Mascio, Fabrizio. 2012. Partiti e Stato in Italia: le nomine pubbliche tra clientelismo e spoils system. Bologna: Il Mulino.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duverger, Maurice. 1951. Les partis politiques. Parigi: Armand Colin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fasano, Luciano M., and Antonella Seddone. 2016. Selecting the Leader, Italian Style. Contemporary Italian Politics 8 (1): 83–102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gallagher, Michael, and Michael Marsh. 1988. Candidate Selection in Comparative Perspective: The Secret Garden of Politics. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, Jeffrey Edward. 2008. Max Weber and the Reinvention of Popular Power. Max Weber Studies 8 (2): 187–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hazan, Reuven Y., and Gideon Rahat. 2010. Democracy within Parties: Candidate Selection Methods and Their Political Consequences. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Heppell, Timothy. 2010. Choosing the Labour Leader: Labour Party Leadership Elections from Wilson to Brown. London: I.B. Tauris.

    Google Scholar 

  • HlouÅ¡ek, Vit. 2015. Two Types of Presidentialization in the Party Politics of Central Eastern Europe. Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica 45 (3): 277–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hopkin, Jonathan. 2001. Bringing the Members Back in? Democratizing Candidate Selection in Britain and Spain. Party Politics 7 (3): 343–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hopkin, Jonathan, and Caterina Paolucci. 1999. The Business Firm Model of Party Organisation: Cases from Spain and Italy. European Journal of Political Research 35 (3): 307–339.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ilonszki, Gabriella, and Réka Várnagy. 2013. Stable Leadership in the Context of Party Change: The Hungarian Case. In The Selection of Political Party Leaders in Contemporary Parliamentary Democracies, ed. Jean-Benoit Pilet and William Cross, 156–171. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ingle, Stephen. 2008. The British Party System: An Introduction. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jensen, Jane S. 2008. Women Political Leaders. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Katz, Richard S., and Peter Mair. 1995. Changing Models of Party Organization and Party Democracy: The Emergence of the Cartel Party. Party Politics 1 (1): 5–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2009. The Cartel Party Thesis: A Restatement. Perspectives on Politics 7 (4): 753–766.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kenig, Ofer. 2009a. Democratization of Party Leadership Selection: Do Wider Selectorates Produce More Competitive Contests? Electoral Studies 28 (2): 240–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2009b. Classifying Party Leaders’ Selection Methods in Parliamentary Democracies. Journal of Elections, Public Opinion and Parties 19 (4): 433–447.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kenig, Ofer, Gideon, Rahat, and Reuven Y. Hazan. 2013. Leadership Selection versus Candidate Selection in Parliamentary Democracies: Similarities and Differences. Paper presented at the ECPR General Conference, Sciences Po, Bordeaux, September 4–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kittilson, Miki C., and Susan Scarrow. 2003. Political Parties and the Rhetoric and Realities of Democratization. In Democracy Transformed? Expanding Political Opportunities in Advanced Industrial Democracies, ed. Bruce E. Cain, Russell J. Dalton, and Susan Scarrow. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kostadinova, Tatiana, and Barry Levitt. 2014a. Toward a Theory of Personalistic Parties: Concept Formation and Theory Building. Politics and Policy 42 (4): 490–512.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2014b. Introduction to Symposium: New Research on Personalist Leadership. Politics and Policy 42 (4): 483–489.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kovács, András. 2013. The Post-communist Extreme Right: The Jobbik Party in Hungary. In Right Wing Populism in Europe: Politics and Discourse, ed. Ruth Wodak, Majid KhosraviNik, and Brigitte Mral, 223–233. London: Bloomsbury Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kristjánsson, Svanur. 1998. Electoral Politics and Governance: Transformation of the Party System in Iceland, 1970–96. In Comparing Party System Change, ed. Lane Jan-Erik and Paul Pennings, 167–182. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • LeDuc, Lawrence. 2001. Democratizing Party Leadership Selection. Party Politics 7 (3): 323–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lendvai, Paul. 2012. Hungary: Between Democracy and Authoritarianism. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lisi, Marco. 2010. The Democratisation of Party Leadership Selection: The Portuguese Experience. Portuguese Journal of Social Science 9 (2): 127–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Low, M. 2014. Parliamentary Candidate Selection in the Conservative Party: The Meaning of Reform for Party Members and Membership Parties. British Politics 9 (4): 401–429.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loxbo, Karl. 2013. The Fate of Intra-party Democracy Leadership Autonomy and Activist Influence in the Mass Party and the Cartel Party. Party Politics 19 (4): 537–554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mandák, Fanni. 2015. Jobbik on the Way to Become a People’s Party? Diritto pubblico comparato ed europeo 17 (3): 673–694.

    Google Scholar 

  • Manow, Philip, and Holger Döring. 2012. Parliament and Government Composition Database (ParlGov). Bremen: University of Bremen, Centre for Social Policy Research. Version 12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mariotti, Claudia. 2011. Berlusconism: Some Empirical Research. Bulletin of Italian Politics 3 (1): 35–57.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, Michael. 1993. Introduction: Selecting the Party Leader. European Journal of Political Research 24 (3): 229–231.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Massari, Oreste. 1987. Le trasformazioni nella direzione del PSI: la direzione e i suoi membri (1976–1984). Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica 17 (3): 403–450.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2015. The Absence of Party Presidentialization in Italy. In The Presidentialization of Political Parties, ed. Gianluca Passarelli, 215–234. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, William G. 2011. Primary Elections. In International Encyclopedia of Social and Behavioral Sciences, ed. Neil J. Smelser and Paul B. Baltes, 12011–12014. Amsterdam: Elsevier.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDonnell, Duncan. 2015. Populist Leaders and Coterie Charisma. Political Studies, published online February 13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Müller-Rommel, Ferdinand, Ina Kubbe, and Michelangelo Vercesi. 2014. Becoming Prime Minister in Europe: Gendered Paths to Political Power? Paper presented at ECPR Joint Session, Salamanca, April 10–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Musella, Fortunato. 2014. A Premier without Parliament. The Legislative Process in the Italian Second Republic. Journal of Comparative Politics 7 (1): 4–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2015. Personal Leaders and Party Change. Italy in a Comparative Perspective. Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica 45 (3): 227–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Orsina, Giovanni. 2014. Berlusconism and Italy: A Historical Interpretation. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Pakulski, Jan. 2012. The Weberian Foundations of Modern Elite Theory and Democratic Elitism. Historical Social Research 37 (1): 38–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pakulski, Jans, and András Körösényi. 2012. Toward Leader Democracy. London: Anthem Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, Talcott. 1964. Introduction. In The Theory of Social and Economic Organization, ed. Max Weber, 3–86. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pasquino, Gianfranco. 2011. Primary Elections in Italy. An Episode in Institutional Imitation. Journal of Modern Italian Studies 16 (5): 667–684.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2013. Finale di partita. Tramonto di una repubblica. Milan: Università Bocconi Editore.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2015. Cittadini senza scettro. Milan: Università Bocconi Editore.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pasquino, Gianfranco, and Marco Valbruzzi. 2016. Primary Elections Between fortuna and virtù. Contemporary Italian Politics 8 (1): 3–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pasquino, Gianfranco, and Fulvio Venturino, eds. 2010. Il partito democratico di Bersani. Persone, profilo e prospettive. Bologna: Bononia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———, eds. 2014. Il Partito Democratico secondo Matteo. Bologna: Bononia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paterson, P. 1967. The Selectorate: The Case for Primary Elections in Britain. London: MacGibbon & Kee.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pilet, Jean-Benoit, and William Cross. 2014. The Selection of Party Leaders in Contemporary Parliamentary Democracies. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Poli, Emanuela. 2001. Forza Italia: Strutture, leadership e radicamento territoriale. Bologna: Il Mulino.

    Google Scholar 

  • Punnett, Robert M. 1992. Selecting the Party Leader: Britain in Comparative Perspective. Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 1993. Selecting the Party Leader in Britain. European Journal of Political Research 24 (3): 257–276.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pytlas, Bartek. 2016. Radical Right Parties in Central and Eastern Europe: Mainstream Party Competition and Electoral Fortune. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Quinn, Thomas. 2004. Electing the Leader: The British Labour Party’s Electoral College. British Journal of Politics & International Relations 6 (3): 333–352.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2010. Membership Ballots in Party Leadership Elections in Britain. Representation 46 (1): 101–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reynolds, Andrew. 1999. Women in the Legislatures and Executives of the World: Knocking at the Highest Glass Ceiling. World Politics 51 (4): 547–572.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandri, Giulia, Antonella Seddone, and Fulvio Venturino, eds. 2015a. Party Primaries in Comparative Perspective. Farnham: Ashgate.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2015b. Understanding Leadership Profile Renewal. In The Politics of Party Leadership. A Cross-national Perspective, ed. Jean-Benoit Pilet and William Cross, 144–171. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sardoni, Alessandra. 2009. Il fantasma del leader. D’alema e gli altri capi mancati del centrosinistra. Venice: Marsilio.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sartori, Giovanni. 1970. Concept Misformation in Comparative Politics. American Political Science Review 64 (4): 1033–1053.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scarrow, Susan E. 1999. Parties and the Expansion of Direct Democracy: Who Benefits? Party Politics 5 (3): 341–362.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scarrow, Susan. 2005. Political Parties and Democracy in Theoretical and Practical Perspective: Implementing Intra-party Democracy. Washington: National Democratic Institut for International Affairs. Retrieved from https://www.ndi.org/sites/default/files/1951_polpart_scarrow_110105_5.pdf+&cd=1&hl=it&client=firefox-b. Accessed July 10, 2015.

  • Seddone, Antonella, and Fulvio Venturino. 2013. Bringing Voters Back in Leader Selection: The Open Primaries of the Italian Democratic Party. Modern Italy 18(3): 303–318.

    Google Scholar 

  • Seyd, Patrick. 1999. New Parties/New Politics. Party Politics 5 (3): 383–405.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stark, Leonard P. 1996. Choosing a Leader: Party Leadership Contests in Britain from Macmillan to Blair. London: Palgrave.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Torney, Simon. 2015. The End of Representative Politics. Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tronconi, Filippo, ed. 2015. Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement: Organisation, Communication and Ideology. Farnham: Ashgate.

    Google Scholar 

  • Valbruzzi, Marco. 2006. Primarie. Partecipazione e Leadership. Bologna: Bononia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2009. L’elezione diretta del primo segretario del PD. In Il Partito democratico. Elezione del segretario, organizzazione e potere, ed. Gianfranco Pasquino, 59–101. Bologna: Bononia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vassallo, Salvatore. 2014. Liberiamo la politica. Prima che sia troppo tardi. Bologna: Il Mulino.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vassallo, Salvatore, and Gianluca Passarelli. 2016. Center-Left Ministerial Primaries in Italy. The Laboratory of the Open Party Model. Contemporary Italian Politics 8 (1): 12–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vercesi, Michelangelo. 2015. Owner Parties and Party Institutionalisation in Italy: Is the Northern League Exceptional?’. Modern Italy 20 (4): 395–410.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vicentini, Giulia. 2013. Selecting the Leader in Italy and Spain. Revista Espanola de Ciencia Politica 33 (3): 11–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wauters, Bram. 2014. Democratising Party Leadership Selection in Belgium: Motivations and Decision Makers. Political Studies 62 (1): 61–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2015. Turnout Rates in Closed Party Leadership Primaries: Flash and Fade Out? Government and Opposition 50 (2): 218–239.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wauters, Bram, Gideon Rahat, and Ofer Kenig. 2015. Democratizing Party Leadership Selection in Belgium and Israel. In Party Primaries in Comparative Perspective, ed. Giulia Sandri, Antonella Seddone, and Fulvio Venturino, 85–103. Farnham: Ashgate.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, Lisa, and William Cross. 2002. The Rise of Plebiscitary Democracy in Canadian Political Parties. Party Politics 8 (6): 673–699.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy

    Fortunato Musella

Authors
  1. Fortunato Musella
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Musella, F. (2018). The Direct Election of Party Heads. In: Political Leaders Beyond Party Politics. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59348-7_2

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation