Democratic Political Process Research Articles

Exploring the Impact of Social Media on Political Participation: A Review of Empirical Studies

Politicians around the world are increasingly using social media platforms as a means to engage with the public and conduct election campaigns. However, the true impact of social media campaigns on political outcomes remains untested and empirical evidence is scant. This research aims to review the existing literature on this issue to explore the impact of social media on political participation. The widespread use of social media by the public has attracted the attention of politicians as a platform for election campaigns. This type of research is a literature review by analyzing previous research qualitatively. The results show that social media has a significant impact on political participation. Social media platforms provide powerful new tools for individuals to engage in the political process and make their voices heard. However, it is important to be aware of the potential challenges of using social media for political participation and to use it responsibly and ethically. Social media has a significant role in expanding access to political information, mobilizing public participation, and reaching marginalized voters. Social media provides an inclusive platform for individuals to participate in political discussions, organize political movements, and strengthen democracy by ensuring the voices of all citizens are heard. However, challenges such as the digital divide and imbalances in social media use also need to be addressed so that the full potential of social media in democracy can be realized. Therefore, joint efforts from governments, NGOs, social media platform providers and the general public are needed to ensure that social media is used responsibly and inclusively in supporting democratic political processes.

Why are the younger generation anti-political?: critical discourse analysis on political education for beginners

There are numerous ways for the younger generation to participate in politics, but there are evidence that they are unwilling to join (anti-politics). This study tries to expose two things: (1) the causes of this trend, and (2) remedies to support smooth political circulation in Indonesia as a democratic country. This study accomplishes this purpose by employing Fairclough's Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). Data acquired from the controversial documentary Sexy Killer's netnography on YouTube. This study highlights several significant findings, particularly the ambivalence and conflict between reality and ideals in today's youth and society. They are skeptical of the earnestness and dedication of government leaders elected through a democratic political process. At the same time, people expect government personnel to carry out their responsibilities. The implications of this study's findings are a criticism of the political education model, which has so far prioritized practical factors above theoretical aspects (content, composition, and proportion).

Retenção de Membros de Organizações Civis e Participação Política: Possíveis Relações

ABSTRACT Objective: to explore the influence of retention of civil society organizations (CSOs) members on political participation. Theoretical framework: members of CSOs are likely to engage in various political activities. The propensity of members to participate in political practices may be influenced by their retention, which enables the development of democratic competencies and values, civic skills and virtues, and other political resources that foster political engagement. Methods: an explanatory quantitative research was carried out, using data from 234 members of CSOs in Mozambique, collected through a questionnaire consisting of validated scales of members’ retention and political participation. Structural equation modeling was performed to test the five research hypotheses, using weighted least squares mean and variance adjusted (WLSMV) as the estimation method, considering member retention practices as a second-order construct to explain each of the dimensions of political participation. Results: The hypothesis testing pointed to the non-rejection of two hypotheses, demonstrating that: member retention practices significantly explain political contact; and member retention practices significantly explain civic engagement. Conclusion: the study demonstrates that the propensity of CSOs members to participate in various political practices can be explained by member retention, which adds value to the literature. The findings contribute to human resource management in CSOs seeking to foster individual capacity to participate in democratic political processes, as well as those aiming to promote the expansion of democracy in society.

Social Media Use and Interpersonal Discussion in Democratic Political Process: Examining Differential Gains from Social Media

Social Media Use and Interpersonal Discussion in Democratic Political Process: Examining Differential Gains from Social Media

Democracy in the digital era

Democracy in the digital era

Arena Komunikasi Politik di Indonesia: Bagaimana Masyarakat Sipil Menggunakan Media Baru sebagai Komunikasi Politik

This research seeks to explain the arena of political communication in Indonesia for civil society groups to use new media from 2010 to 2020. The context of this time shows the increasingly complex development of democracy and new media, including the presence of social media. The research was conducted using the case study method by exploring three cases of civil society groups, namely Remotivi, Combine Resource Institution, and Zero Kilometer Makassar. This study departs from the hypothesis that the use of new media by civil society groups can encourage a more democratic process of political communication. This study found that the presence of new media has not been able to encourage civil society to use the arena of political communication properly. Judging from the aspect of the arena, which consists of existence, regulation, relations, and public space, it turns out that it has not been able to encourage a democratic political communication process even though new media has been used in communication actions by civil society groups.This research seeks to explain the arena of political communication in Indonesia for civil society groups to use new media from 2010 to 2020. The context of this time shows the increasingly complex development of democracy and new media, including the presence of social media. The research was conducted using the case study method by exploring three cases of civil society groups, namely Remotivi, Combine Resource Institution, and Zero Kilometer Makassar. This study departs from the hypothesis that the use of new media by civil society groups can encourage a more democratic process of political communication. This study found that the presence of new media has not been able to encourage civil society to use the arena of political communication properly. Judging from the aspect of the arena, which consists of existence, regulation, relations, and public space, it turns out that it has not been able to encourage a democratic political communication process even though new media has been used in communication actions by civil society groups.

Battered by Geopolitical Winds, Bulgaria Struggles to Restart Much Needed Reforms

Battered by Geopolitical Winds, Bulgaria Struggles to Restart Much Needed Reforms

Transformation of Markers of the Deliberative Democracy Theory in Modern Political Science

The article studies the features of the transformation of markers of the theory of deliberative democracy in modern political science. It has been established that a feature of this model of democracy is the possibility of its definition as a process and form of politics aimed at transforming the individual interests of political subjects by organizing a rational discussion and reaching consensus on the problems that determine the subject field of political decisions. It is substantiated that the initial model of the theory of deliberative democracy by J. Bessett is based on the concept of institutionalized order, norms of public opinion and consensus, which are the source of the organization of the process of deliberation in a democratic political process. As one of the effective ways of making political decisions, deliberative democracy in the concept of J. Bessette functionally relies on discussion and discourse that form a space for competition of opinions and beliefs and public opinion in the status of resource support for the political course. In J. Bessette’s model of deliberative democracy, the status of the subject of discussion and discourse is assigned to politicians and experts and did not provide for the acquisition of such a status by all citizens. It has been proved that modern versions of the theory of deliberative democracy, built around the idea of deliberation occurring with the participation of political institutions, civil society institutions and citizens, pay special attention to such markers as procedures, forms and results of deliberation. Meaning discussion, dialogue and discourse as forms of deliberation, delibe-rative democracy is modelled as a forum in which reasoning, ideas, opinions, preferences are transformed in the process of public discussion and approach rationality. According to the ideal model of deliberative democracy, political discussion (discourse, dialogue) should be oriented towards the development of a justified rational agreement on social norms. Only the result of a discussion in the form of consensus, reached in real actual political discourse, makes the social norm justified, substantiated and true. Achieving consensus in the deliberative model of democracy acts as a strategic skill based on intellectual and psychological techniques and technologies, the admissibility of which is derived from the procedures of the public political process and the virtues of political subjects. One such technique is the listening technique. It is substantiated that discussions about the relationship between deliberation and legitimacy, which is reflected in the procedural principles of democracy (interaction and publicity; accountability; collective mind), have become an important direction in the transformation of markers of deliberative democracy. Democratic practices of relying on a deliberative model of legitimacy should take into account the vulnerability of political behaviour (participation, activity) to quasi-deliberative forms of organizing discussion and the conditional possibility of attaining consensus on the common good. Its search, not its achievement, is a resource of democracy that maintains interest and ensures inclusion in public problems that can be solved by means of politics.

Update of Methodological Principles for Studying Political Participation of Citizens in the Conditions of Digitalization of Democratic Political Process

The article presents the results of a study of the main trends in updating the methodological principles for studying the political participation of citizens in the context of the digitalization of the democratic political process. It has been established that in modern political science, e-democracy is a term by which scientists describe a wide range of practices of online involvement of citizens in political decision-making. The relationship we established between the concept of e-democracy and classical models of democracy, which indicate the specific content of political participation, indicates that e-democracy is based on models of participatory democracy and deliberative democracy. It is substantiated that due to the potential of e-democracy in the formation of new ways of communication between citizens and actors in the political space, its tools of political participation begin to integrate into the subject space of the liberal model of democracy, in which the political participation of citizens is deployed in social networks, therefore it has a decentralized nature and status. instrumental value. The analysis of the content of scientific discussions regarding the relationship between the categories of e-democracy and digital democracy in the context of the problem of political participation proved that the term digital democracy better reflects the essence of digitalization processes in the political space, but it is used as synonymous with the term e-democracy. Political participation by means of digital democracy involves a combination of virtual and traditional instruments of influence on the political system, while in the classical approaches of democracy, e-participation is defined as the result of the evolution of forms of citizen participation in politics. It is proved that the process of digitalization of democracy determined the need to update the methodological principles of the study the influence of mobilization practices on the nature of political participation. The conceptualization of this problem is most fully realized by van Dijk, who means digital mobilization practices as a mechanism for updating the connection between the functions, forms and tools of political participation, which clearly demonstrates that digital democracy is a way to improve the quality and legitimacy of political decision-making.

Complicit Civility and the Politics of Exclusion: Nixon’s Southern Strategy and Rockefeller’s Response

This essay analyzes the 1964 and 1968 Republican campaigns as a case study in the rhetoric of complicit civility, a strategy of elite cooperation in which one rhetor wields a subtle rhetoric of exclusion while other rhetors, who recognize the undemocratic aspects of that rhetoric but also its potential electoral appeal, challenge the rhetor but not the rhetoric, instead shifting the political argument to other grounds. This combination endorses antidemocratic rhetoric while normalizing it as a routine part of democratic political processes. As a strategy practiced by elites, complicit civility entrenches extant hierarchies and authorizes exclusion.

Political Process in Bulgaria: Failed Coalition and the Third Parliamentary Elections during One Year

The article analyzes the political process in the Republic of Bulgaria and a number of elections to the National Assembly,which in 2021 were already in April, July and announced for November.The factors, which influenced the need to hold parliamentary elections three times in a row.This shows, that the state is going through a difficult period of instability and turbulence.Building a democratic state governed by the rule of law in Bulgaria,despite its membership in the EU, it is still in its infancy. The author emphasizes that the state is growing alienated from democratic political processes and despair of their effectiveness.This requires legal regulation of the following issues:ensuring universal suffrage;the possibility of campaigning and outreach among voters on others,in addition to the state (Bulgarian) languages,after all, large minorities live in Bulgaria (Turkish, Roma, etc.);improving the financing of election campaigning and the mechanism for appealing the results of parliamentary electionsbased on the transition from indirect to direct appeal by election participants to the NZB of their results. Solving the main problem of Bulgaria – reducing corruption,in fact, it did not happen.Positive success in the fight against corruption can be achieved with the support of the population,his belief that the state will be able to defeat corruption,clear enforcement of anti-corruption measures in various government agencies and institutions.The growth of political consciousness of citizens,which is expressed in a broad protest movement,in the medium term may become the internal basis for the formation of real,rather than a formal electoral system organized according to European standards.

Who will guard the guards from corruption?

Corruption is common in political and economic processes. Auditing is one of the options to fight it. Another option is the Judiciary Branch, supported by the Constitution and laws approved by the Legislative Branch. However, these auditors depend on a higher-level auditor as they can also be corrupt. Ethics in public administration evolves over time and is part of society’s culture, which may include tolerance to high corruption in a given period. Since the 1950s, the theory of competitive markets has been adapted to explain the competition between political agents running for public office. In this view, high competition is equivalent to a democratic political process. An essential element is the free access to information about the politicians’ acts during their tenures. In the long run, political competition reduces politicians' personal gains, including legal and illegal income, because of informed voter choices. Models of monopoly or firms with few competitors in markets are equivalent to authoritarian regimes under the control of the Executive Branch, which combines restrictions on critical information and high entry barriers for competitors. Also in the long run, the political monopoly seeks to at least restrict information about its acts of corruption, preserving personal gains, but attracting competitors. Due to weak contestation, achieving citizens' preferences for political ethics takes a lengthier and more turbulent period of adjustment under a monopoly. In any case, the voter will be the auditors' auditor and will be more effective in a competitive political situation.

Regulatory Entrepreneurship, Fair Competition, and Obeying the Law

Some sharing economy firms have adopted a strategy of “regulatory entrepreneurship,” openly violating regulations with the aim of rendering them dead letters. This article argues that in a democracy, regulatory entrepreneurship is a presumptively unethical business strategy. In all but the most corrupt political environments, businesses that seek to change their regulatory environment should do so through the democratic political process, and they should do so without using illegal business practices to build a political constituency. To show this, the article defends a qualified moral obligation for businesspeople to obey the law even in societies that fall short of ideal democracy and that are rife with economic injustice. Owners and managers of successful businesses have strong moral reasons to obey laws concerning resource allocation. Such laws include not only property law, but also tax laws, environmental regulations, and other laws that regulate businesses in competitive markets. The moral reasons to obey such laws apply even to laws that business leaders think unfair or inefficient, provided that the laws in question have reasonable, good faith defenders.

PEDDLING OR PERSUADING: CHINA'S ECONOMIC STATECRAFT IN AUSTRALIA

AbstractWith the globalization of Chinese capital, economic statecraft has become an increasingly prominent component of China's foreign policy. In this article, I examine China's use of economic inducements in developed democracies, a topic of growing concern for policymakers, focusing on the case of Australia. I show how Beijing's attempts to coopt public voices and influence Australia's foreign policy using non-transparent political donations and academic funding generated a strong backlash. At the same time, economic interdependence has provided a buffering effect, with key domestic actors in Australia advocating for cooperative relations, although this effect can in turn be limited by Beijing's coercive economic tactics. My findings underline the reputational costs of certain approaches to economic statecraft, the value of building supportive coalitions, and the challenges faced by China's authoritarian state capitalist model. They also highlight the impacts of globalized Chinese capital in developed democracies, including the resilience and vulnerabilities inherent in democratic political processes.

ORGANIZATIONAL AND FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OF REGIONAL ELECTION CAMPAIGNS IN RUSSIA

The article presents a structural and functional analysis of election campaigns in Russia. It is obvious that electoral campaigns of candidates are unfolding during the election period, which, through interaction with citizens, enlist their support and sympathy, which contributes to their achievement of the main goal - victory in the elections and, therefore, the seizure and retention of power. The election campaign, being a structural element of the electoral process, is a set of events carried out by various subjects of this process in order to win the election by attracting the votes of the electorate. In general, the electoral company, on the one hand, is a set of measures for organizing elections, regulated by law and carried out by election commissions, and, on the other, a set of actions of political actors involved in the electoral process. It was established that election campaigns have a typical structure, organizational features, political, administrative and socio-cultural characteristics at the federal and regional levels of the electoral process. Among the regional organizational and functional features of domestic election campaigns are: a high degree of intensity of the election process, the dependence of the success of regional election campaigns on the electoral activity of citizens, the orientation of candidates to the needs of the residents of the region, and a prompt response to criticism from the electoral community. The study of the features of the implementation of regional election campaigns is important for Russian reality, especially in the conditions of the ongoing formation and intensive development of the democratic political process in the Russian Federation at the present stage.

To take or not to take: is the freebie culture in Tamil Nadu elections a threat to Indian democracy?

ABSTRACT The fulcrum of democracy is the electoral process. If the integrity of the electoral process is compromised then the very notion of representation becomes vacuous. In states such as Tamil Nadu in Southern India, distribution of money and promise of freebies has reached alarming levels with elections being countermanded several times. In this scenario, the danger to the system of parliamentary democracy and the Indian republic cannot be gainsaid. Therefore, this article analyses whether the people of India, especially in states like Tamil Nadu, are really concerned about governance or do they cynically participate in the evisceration of democratic electoral and political process, which is the moot point. The answer is complex and nuanced. People are concerned about governance but vote strategically due to systemic malaise. Despite being plied with allurements in the form of cash and other freebies, people, in the final analysis, vote on the basis of the performance of the government.

Love is blind: partisan alignment and political corruption in Spain

Ever since the spectacular boom and bust cycle of the Spanish real estate industry, endemic corruption at the local level has become a widely recognized problem in the national public discourse. In an effort to expose an under-explored political determinant, this paper investigates the effect of local and regional alignment in fomenting corruption at the Spanish municipal level. To do so, we construct an ample panel dataset on the prevalence of corrupt practices by local politicians, which is employed to test the possible impact of partisan alignment in three consecutive joint municipal and regional elections. Findings show aligned municipalities to be more corrupt than non-aligned ones, an effect that is further associated with absolute majorities at both levels of government and higher capital transfers. By contrast, we also show that “throwing the rascals out” could be an effective strategy for curbing the corrupt practices of aligned municipalities. This indicates that the democratic political process may be effective in corruption control if agreements can be reached to remove corrupt politicians or parties from power.

Opšte pravo glasa - jednakost ili privilegija

This article looks at the role and place of General Voting as a key ingredient for the democratic political process. This right is interpreted as a part of the very essence of equality in general and as a basic foundation of political democracy in particular. In this context, there is the issue about privileges in politics, which regardless of their regulation are becoming increasingly established as a legal barrier to the realization of complete political equality. Some proposals have been also made to limit political privileges in the democratic state.

Fake It ‘Til You Make It: A Natural Experiment to Identify European Politicians’ Benefit from Twitter Bots

Social media giants stand accused of facilitating illegitimate interference with democratic political processes around the world. Part of this problem are malicious bots: automated fake accounts passing as humans. However, we lack a systematic understanding of which politicians benefit most from them. We tackle this question by leveraging a Twitter purge of malicious bots in July 2018 and a new dataset on Twitter activity by all members of national parliaments (MPs) in the EU in 2018. Since users had no influence on how and when Twitter purged millions of bots, it serves as an exogenous intervention to investigate whether some parties or politicians lost more followers. We find drops in follower counts concentrated among radical right politicians, in particular those with strong anti-EU discourse. This is the first set of empirical, causally identified evidence supporting the idea that the radical right benefits more from malicious bots than other party families.

Politics of Protest in Pakistan: Causes and Features of the PTI (2014) Dharna in Islamabad, Pakistan

Public protests, agitations and demonstrations are part of the democratic political process. It shapes the polity of a country and transforms social, political and economic aspects. In Pakistan's history, protest or pressure politics has played a significant role. Significant protests in Pakistan have been held against 'election riggings' including the recent one against 2013 general elections (presumably won by Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League N). This present study discusses the recent protest 'popularly called Dharna' staged by Pakistan Tehreek e Insaaf (PTI) under the leadership of the present Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad for 126 days against the alleged rigging of elections of 2013. This empirical study explores the causes of PTI Dharna. It is based on the Primary data collected through a random sample of interviews from students, lawyers and political activists in May-June 2019 in Lahore, Nowshera and Peshawar, Pakistan. We argue that the Dharna has multiple features long continued presence, participation of multiple groups, violence and media coverage. However, the dharna has multiple causes. The significant reason of PTI for staging protest against the Nawaz Shairf was the alleged rigging in the general elections of 2013. Other causes of this dharna are to expose corruption and alleged role of establishment for their vested political interests.