New Types of Party Affiliation and Representation

• In Event: New Forms of Party Affiliation

Abstract

The general trend across Western Europe is that membership figures decline even though trends vary both within and across countries. In light of these general trends, parties are changing the ways in which they enable affiliation by opening up for other types of party affiliation such as B-members, Facebook supporters etc. The variation in partisan participation and hence in how parties provide participatory linkage is also detectable within traditional party membership organizations as party member activism varies, as other types of political participation, in the degree, type and intensity of participation. Based on surveys and interviews among European party affiliates, the analysis of party affiliation and activism shows, first, how parties are (transformed) channels of participation, and, second, how this change challenges representation. While some social groups see an advantage in newer and looser forms of party affiliation and activism, other social groups are disadvantaged since these new forms of affiliation and activism do not provide the necessary collective resources previously provided.

Author

• Karina Kosiara-Pedersen, University of Copenhagen