Competition in Dominant Party Systems

Abstract

The dynamics of competition in party systems characterized by one party dominance reflects both the trajectory of the dominant party’s support—in most cases one of long-term decline—and the range and structure of the opposition parties. The evidence suggests that dominance is compatible with quite different electoral systems. If the electoral system neither fosters nor inhibits dominance, it does have an impact on the internal structure and life of the dominant party. Although dominance favours centrism, opposition can take distinctive forms. In the two oldest nation-building systems, it came from the ill-defined right, in two state-building systems from a more ideological left, and in developing India it was scattered across the spectrum until one opposition party emerged in an attempt to redefine the nature of national politics. In all cases, dominance ensures that intraparty conflict in the government party defines much of the real competition in the system.