Ideology and Party System Change in Consociational Systems: The Case of Non-Nationalist Parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

Following a period of nationalist party dominance in Bosnia and Herzegovina, alternative parties have emerged to challenge the established parties with ideologies that seek to bridge ethnic divides. This article examines the ideological positioning of non-nationalist parties relative to nationalist parties and the challenges for such parties in supplanting the dominance of ethnicity in politics. Based on elite interviews and detailed analysis of party documents, we argue that these parties have identified sufficient electoral support for alternative conceptions of politics and inter-ethnic relations in postwar Bosnia to promote their non-nationalist agendas. The parties couple distinct non-nationalist ideas with ideological formulations that have the potential to bridge across ethnic groups. However, the stability in support for non-nationalist parties, even as individual parties with distinct ideologies rise or fall, suggests that the appeal of this approach is limited by the necessity of governing with nationalist parties and the appeal of state contestation.