The article presents a critical discussion of the model of polarized pluralism formulated by Sartori (1976), and, in particular of the hypothesis that a high number of political parties, together with a marked polarization of the uni-dimensional political space, will produce centrifugal drives in the party competition. Through a formal analysis, it will be argued that in a polarized or ideologized space of competition the centrifugal drives do not prevail, because even the anti-system parties are ultimately forced to some centripetal shifts. The interaction of the strategies employed by pro and anti-system parties are illustrated in a typology. Secondly, searching for a proxy indicator of the centripetal tactics employed by the anti-system parties, a revision of Sartori’s index of coalition potential is further introduced. Anchoring on standards of the coalition theory, the paper puts forward a conceptual schema that allows the identification of four types of parties, with high or low coalition potential, complementary parties, and blackmailing parties.

Anti-System Oppositions, Political Competition and Coalition Potential in Polarized Party Systems. A Conceptual Re-Framing

Giuseppe Ieraci
2021-01-01

Abstract

The article presents a critical discussion of the model of polarized pluralism formulated by Sartori (1976), and, in particular of the hypothesis that a high number of political parties, together with a marked polarization of the uni-dimensional political space, will produce centrifugal drives in the party competition. Through a formal analysis, it will be argued that in a polarized or ideologized space of competition the centrifugal drives do not prevail, because even the anti-system parties are ultimately forced to some centripetal shifts. The interaction of the strategies employed by pro and anti-system parties are illustrated in a typology. Secondly, searching for a proxy indicator of the centripetal tactics employed by the anti-system parties, a revision of Sartori’s index of coalition potential is further introduced. Anchoring on standards of the coalition theory, the paper puts forward a conceptual schema that allows the identification of four types of parties, with high or low coalition potential, complementary parties, and blackmailing parties.
2021
Pubblicato
https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.48271/103050
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
03_ieraci.pdf

Accesso chiuso

Tipologia: Documento in Versione Editoriale
Licenza: Copyright Editore
Dimensione 414.15 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
414.15 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
3010891_03_ieraci-Post_print.pdf

Open Access dal 01/07/2023

Tipologia: Bozza finale post-referaggio (post-print)
Licenza: Digital Rights Management non definito
Dimensione 946.51 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
946.51 kB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11368/3010891
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus ND
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? ND
social impact