The Alternative for Germany’s radicalization in historical-comparative perspective

This article chronicles the AfD’s rightward repositioning and compares it with the programmatic development of three postwar German parties on the ideological wings. By highlighting factors that tilt the balance of power away from moderate reformers towards hardliners, this comparative analysis sheds light on the conditions that lead a relatively successful party on the ideological wings, such as the AfD, to radicalize its programme. Four variables stand out: whether party hardliners take the blame for the recent election loss; whether they offer a convincing programmatic and strategic alternative to the reformers; whether changes in party composition strengthen hardliners; and whether external factors enhance their weight within the party. The essay concludes that the AfD’s radicalization was unusual, but not exceptional. It is however too early to conclude that the Federal Republic’s distinctive institutions and political culture no longer impose significant costs on parties that shift their programmes away from the centre

Dimensionality, ideology and party positions towards European integration

<p>The rise of political contestation over European integration has led many scholars to examine the role that broader ideological positions play in structuring party attitudes towards European integration. This article extends the existing approaches in two important ways. First, it shows that whether the dimensionality of politics is imagined in a one-dimensional ‘general left‒right’ form or a two-dimensional ‘economic left‒right/social liberal-conservative’ form leads to very different understandings of the way ideology has structured attitudes towards European integration, with the two-dimensional approach offering greater explanatory power. Second, existing approaches have modelled the influence of ideology on attitudes towards European integration as a static process. This article shows that the relationship between ideology and European integration has changed substantially over the history of European integration: divisions over social issues have replaced economic concerns as the main driver of party attitudes towards European integration.</p

Cabinets in Eastern Europe

'Cabinets in Eastern Europe' is a comprehensive study which enables the reader to compare the origins, structure, composition and activities of these cabinets and to draw lessons from this comparison. Each chapter begins with a survey of the evolution of cabinets since the fall of communism at the beginning of the 1990s. The emphasis is then laid on the place of the cabinet in the constitution and on the role of presidents and prime ministers in the formation of life of each cabinet. At a time when most Eastern European countries are candidates for membership in the European Union, this volume provides a comparative presentation of the way in which cabinets have been evolving in Eastern Europe since the end of communism.Cabinets in post-communist East-Central Europe and in the Balkans : introduction / Jean Blondel. -- Part 1. East-central Euope. -- 1. Estonia / F. Müller-Rommel and G. Sootla. -- 2. Latvia / F. Müller-Rommel and O. Nørgaard. -- 3. Lithuania / F. Müller-Rommel and O. Hersted Hansen. -- 4. Poland / J. Blondel and F. Müller-Rommel. -- 5. Czech Republic / F. Müller-Rommel and Z. Mansfeldová. -- 6. Slovakia / F. Müller-Rommel and D. Malova. -- 7. Hungary / F. Müller-Rommel and G. Ilonszki. -- 8. Slovenia / F. Müller-Rommel and S. Gaber. -- Part 2. The Balkans. -- 9. Romania / J. Blondel and I. Penescu. -- 10. Moldova / J. Blondel and S. Matteucci. -- 11. Bulgaria / J. Blondel and S. Andreev. -- 12. Albania / J. Blondel and L. Chiodi. -- 13. Macedonia / J. Blondel. -- 14. Croatia / J. Blondel and S. Selo-Sabic. -- 15. Bosnia-Hercegovina / J. Blondel and S. Selo-Sabic. -- 16. Serbia and the new Yugoslavia / J. Blondel and F. Privitera. -- 17. Cabinets in post-communist East-Central Europe and the Balkans : empirical findings and research agenda / Ferdinand Müller-Rommel