Intraparty Democracy and Responsiveness to Rival Parties’ Policies

Abstract

ObjectiveWe address whether intraparty democracy conditions political parties’ responsiveness to rival parties’ policy shifts.MethodWe estimate parameters of a spatial econometric model of parties’ policy positions in 11 established democracies.ResultsInternally democratic parties respond to shifts in rival parties’ policies, and internally undemocratic parties do not respond to rival parties’ policy shifts.ConclusionWe argue that this occurs because intraparty deliberation provides a channel through which rival parties influence their competitors’ policies. Because rank‐and‐file party members are influenced by deliberative processes more than party leaders—and the policy goals of internally democratic parties’ policies are heavily influenced by their party members—deliberative processes lead democratic parties to respond to shifts in rival parties’ policy positions. This work has important implications for our understanding of parties’ election strategies, intraparty politics, and how policies diffuse between parties competing in the same election.