Political Competition Research Articles

Moral Boundaries

This article reviews the growing economics literature that studies the politico-economic impacts of heterogeneity in moral boundaries across individuals and cultures. The so-called universalism-versus-particularism cleavage has emerged as a main organizing principle behind various salient features of contemporary political competition, including individual-level and spatial variation in voting, the realignment of rich liberals and poor conservatives, the internal structure of ideology, and the moral content of political messaging. A recurring theme is that the explanatory power of universalism for left-wing policy views and voting is considerably larger than that of traditional economic variables. Looking at the origins of heterogeneity in universalism, an emerging consensus is that cross-group variation is partly economically functional and reflects that morality evolved to support cooperation in economic production. This insight organizes much work on how kinship systems, market exposure, political institutions, and ecology have shaped universalism through their impacts on the relative benefits of localized and impersonal interactions.

A path forward: social democratic strategies and responses to far-right populist challenges

ABSTRACT Social Democratic parties have been in crisis across Europe in recent decades. The once dominant party family has struggled to adapt to the structural challenges of post-industrialization, changes in its core constituency, and increased political competition from alternative parties. This article analyzes the welfare chauvinist shift embraced by some Social Democratic parties to assess its viability as an electoral strategy in response to this changing political landscape and far-right party challenges. The article analyzes individual-level data from 26 European countries from successive European Voter Survey rounds for 2014 and 2019. This article tests the relationship between voter positions on government intervention, redistribution, and immigration and support for Social Democratic parties. Issue salience data is also examined to identify the importance granted by the public to different concerns over time. Despite claims that welfare chauvinist approaches represent a path forward for Social Democrats, this research finds that this strategy is not a broad winning formula. Rather there are incentives for Social Democrats to return to their egalitarian and progressive roots on key socioeconomic and sociocultural issues.

Political and policy content in human behavior in the social environment textbooks

ABSTRACT Both the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics and the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) require that social work practitioners and students engage in political and policy practice. However, social work practitioners report that they feel inadequately prepared by their education to engage in the political system. Thus, utilizing a content analysis approach, this study explores the frequency and integration of political and policy themes in Human Behavior in the Social Environment (HBSE) textbooks. Reviewing 607 learning objectives in six HBSE textbooks determined that political and policy themes are implicitly identified within these textbooks; however, more steps can be taken to integrate and explicitly incorporate political and policy themes. Thus, this article provides findings from content analysis as well as suggestions for social work educators to incorporate political and policy themes in HBSE courses.

Migrant necropolitics in No Man’s Land camps

Abstract Through genealogical explorations of the understudied No Man’s Land camps at Rukban and Zero Point, this paper aims to contribute a decolonial, South-centric perspective to critical refugee politics literature. The two No Man’s Land camps are conceptualized here as necropolitical spaces of migrant abandonment and containment, where States effectively determine ‘who may live and who must die’ through their violent expulsion of unwanted populations, securitized border policies and restrictions on life-saving aid. Despite their immobilization, the paper highlights how the displaced migrants formed self-government and engaged in claim-making for aid, rights, and homeland political change, thus transforming the death worlds of the No Man’s Land camps into spaces of vibrant political contention. This necropolitical resistance comes with the risk of death or redisplacement, but it provides tantalizing clues of the possibilities of living, even if only momentarily, beyond the law and the State.

Combating climate change through sustainable cattle ranching in the global south: The role of societal corporatism

The contours of the collective action necessary to limit climate change remain difficult to discern. In this context, societal corporatist political processes, fueled by crisis narratives, have shown some promise as political devices for mobilizing people. Corporatist processes have, historically, brought political competitors like employers and labor unions together to negotiate compacts that have advanced collective goods during times of crisis. In response to the climate crisis in the Global South, affluent donor groups, state officials, some farmers, and indigenous peoples have begun to assemble corporatist-like coalitions to pursue climate stabilization. A comparative case study of efforts to promote sustainable cattle ranching through the spread of silvopastoral landscapes in Colombia and Ecuador illustrates this political dynamic, its shortcomings, and its accomplishments.

Political Competition Over Life and Death

Political Competition Over Life and Death

A Farewell to Arms: Paramilitaries Demobilization, Political Competition and Public Goods in Colombia

Scholars have highlighted how local elites can use their de facto power to capture democracy. This makes electoral competition particularly vulnerable in armed conflicts driven by politics. Would a reduction in politically motivated violence perpetrated by local elites promote electoral competition? To investigate this, I employ a synthetic difference-in-differences strategy within the setting of Colombia’s demobilization of paramilitaries, who were heavily connected with local elites across the country. Following demobilization, I observe an increase in competition. I show that this improvement in competition is consistent with a decrease in repressive violence, leading to an increased likelihood of electoral candidacy for parties that would have potentially been victims of violence in the absence of demobilization. However, I also find that parties associated with elites increased their electoral presence, showing an effort to compensate for the loss produced by demobilization. Finally, I present evidence that public goods investment in territories previously controlled by paramilitaries undergoes a transformation, now benefiting a broader sector of the population, which I argue is partly explained by the increased competition.

Role preferences for ethnic autonomous region government in emergency management in China

China's ethnic autonomous regions, inhabited by diverse ethnic groups and located near national borders or at provincial intersections, confront complex natural, relatively underdeveloped economic, and ethnic harmony challenges. Governments balance central government-assigned tasks and ethnic harmony, showing varied responses: some prioritize stability, others focus on management, and some are indifferent to local emergencies. Given this phenomenon, why do governments in these regions vary in their responses to emergencies? This research, based on government role theory, examines how role preferences influence government behavior in emergency management, identifying two key roles: economic man and social man, and establishes a four-quadrant role analysis framework: : local guardian, political competitor, moral paragon, and indifferent bystander. Grounded theory explains these roles and evaluation indicators, with evaluations from 44 scholars gathered via questionnaire, and the indicator weights determined using the Analytic Hierarchy Process. The weight matrix then calculates economic man (X) and social man (Y) values for 272 cases based on expert scores. The research results reveal that (1) these governments exhibit an overall role preference of “local guardian > political competitor > indifferent bystander > moral paragon” in emergency management. (2) This ranking also reflects their preference for the economic man role. (3) Factors contributing to this ranking include cultural differences, administrative contracting, and performance tournaments within the Chinese system and administrative ethics. These findings provide theoretical insights into emergency management role preferences in multi-ethnic, multi-racial, and even multicultural regions, ultimately aiming to enhance local government emergency management efficiency, optimize policy formulation, and ensure community resilience.

Transnational intra-party dynamics on European democratic reforms

One of the core elements of the European Union's (EU) democratic deficit is the lack of a genuine supranational political competition. Some processes were intended to mitigate these effects, such as the introduction of the Spitzenkandidaten (SK) and the possibility of creating Transnational Lists (TL) for European Parliament (EP) elections. These processes would be accompanied by a strengthening of the role of the European political parties (henceforth, Europarties) as the only transnational party federations capable of mobilising their national members in decisions beyond the EP. Europarties would thus be able to promote transnational candidates to the European institutions and become true political parties at the EU-level. However, Europarties are heterogeneous organisations of national parties, where ideological dynamics of these transnational parties can be subject to party dissidence, with differentiated positions on European democracy during EU elections. By adopting a principal-agent model of party organisation, the aim of this research is to analyse what effects did Europarty internal dynamics have had on the creation of a common position on the SK and TL. Based on evidence from Europarties, we suggest that supranational intra-party dissidence is low regarding EU democratic reforms.

Interaction and Confrontation of Islamic Civilization with Christian Civilization Post Eastern Roman Conquest in Europe

<em>For Christian nations, the fall of Constantinople symbolized the collapse of their defensive stronghold and highlighted the threat posed by the Islamic Ottoman Empire. This event marked the transition from the center of Christian civilization to Islamic civilization, sparking a process of adaptation and interaction between the two civilizations. This paper examines how this interaction took place, including the integration and conflicts recorded in history and their impacts up to the present day. The research method used is a literature study, where the author traces relevant documents with a focus on the study. After finding the relevant sources, the researcher reads and critically analyzes them to understand their content, evaluate their validity, and reliability. The research results show that the relationship between Islam and Christianity during the Ottoman Empire demonstrated complex dynamics, with a mixture of tolerance, cooperation, and conflict. Policies of tolerance and cultural exchange had a positive impact on the development of civilization in the region. However, confrontations between the two religions arose from various factors, such as: Differences in beliefs and traditions became sources of tension, especially in the Balkan region. Political rivalry between the Ottomans and European Christian powers impacted inter-religious relations. Both Christian and Islamic parties discriminated against minority religions. The conflicts and tensions that emerged are also part of history that needs to be studied to understand the complexity of inter-religious relations in the past.</em>

ELECTORAL PROCESS AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE: CAUSES AND CHARACTERISTICS

The article is devoted to the study of the main causes, mechanisms and patterns of political violence in the context of electoral struggle. It has been found that under conditions of significant competition and uncertainty of election results, political elites may choose illegal tools and strategies to maintain power: violence, bribery, fraud, intimidation, and persecution of opponents. It has been proven that the use of violence during the electoral process can significantly distort the voting results, undermine the legitimacy of the elections, and limit the participation of opposition candidates and voters.It has been determined that electoral violence involves the use of organized physical coercion, repression, intimidation, persecution, and destruction of property before, during, and after elections in order to influence the electoral process, voter behavior, and voting results. Such violence becomes an obstacle to holding democratic, fair, free, and competitive elections, hinders the establishment of consensus between government and opposition forces, and can provoke a large-scale armed conflict. It has been proven that the causes of electoral violence include the participants’ desire to influence voting results, increase their advantage over competitors, intimidate disloyal voters, deprive opposition supporters of the opportunity to vote, delegitimize the electoral process, and discredit the government’s ability to maintain security and the functioning of political institutions. As a result, it was found that political competition, unpredictable election results and ethnic polarization of society increase the likelihood of electoral violence, deep political crisis and armed confrontation, which can have critical consequences for political security and the sustainability of democracy.

The ‘war of images’ between Louis XIV and Leopold I: Jean-Baptiste Lully’s music and Il pomo d’oro in Vienna in 1667

Abstract The current article uncovers a new concordance for an enigmatic dance suite titled Balletti francesi that was copied in Vienna in 1667, showing that all eight dances are arrangements of Lully’s music from Hercule amoureux. This finding has permitted new insights into how and why Lully’s music appeared in Vienna so early. I argue that the unusual titles of the suite, particularly the four dances for animated statues, connect it to the iconography of the opera Il pomo d’oro and to the political rivalry between Austria and France. Statue iconographies in opera and ballet differed between the imperial and French courts as part of complex strategies of monarchical representation. While much remains uncertain about the transmission and performance of the Lully Balletti francesi, the suite opens a new window on how the dominant two states of Europe engaged in strategies of cultural appropriation and political theatre, while mobilizing music within a so-called ‘war of images’.

European Solidarity Takes the Field: The Dimensional Structure of Political Competition in the European Union After the Polycrisis

AbstractMost studies investigating the dimensionality of political space in Europe demonstrate that European Union (EU)‐related issues are orthogonal to the economic left–right dimension. This literature usually employs survey items tapping into general support for the EU. However, the multiple crises that hit Europe after 2008 have polarized even Europhile voters on the more specific issue of European solidarity. This article aims to investigate how voters' attitudes towards European solidarity interplay with their position on the left–right and European integration dimensions, as well as specific economic and cultural issues. Empirical analyses employ original survey data collected in 2019 in 10 EU countries. Results partially support the expectations of regional differences in the dimensionality of the political space, with European solidarity more strongly associated with left–right, EU integration and immigration in Northern EU member states than in Eastern and Southern countries, in which voters are more likely to support solidarity notwithstanding their general political orientations.

THE FORM OF GOVERNMENT OF A DEMOCRATIC STATE ON THE BACKGROUND OF CRISIS POLITICAL AND INSTITUTIONAL DESIGN

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the form of government as a structural basis for the exercise of power, formed within the framework of constitutional law, under the condition of representation of the main socio-economic groups of society. The purpose of the study is to establish the peculiarities of the form of state government as a factor in the formation of democratic institutional design. Features of the form of government as a factor of institutionalization of relations between authorized centers of power are characterized. It was emphasized that the modernization of the form of government in the political agenda may indicate a lack of deep consensus regarding the development of the political system. The significance of changes for institutional design within the evolution of the form of state government, which depends on the level of satisfaction of the requirements and needs of key political players, is analyzed. The significance of the political experience of Ukraine, which during the last decades has shown that political expediency is a more significant principle than considerations of preserving constitutional stability, is revealed. It was found that the existence of the current form of government in Ukraine is the result of the evolution of certain institutions, first of all, the institution of the presidency. In the context of the experience of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the assessment of the crisis phenomena of 2008 and 2010 becomes important, in particular the pressure of the demands of socio-economic balancing, which caused the “internal national reading” of the functioning of the form of government. It is revealed that the use of the existing potential of the form of government to ensure advantages in political competition led to the authoritarianization of the institution of the prime minister in modern Hungary. It has been proven that the international community’s fixation on the deterioration of the state of human rights protection has become a clear evidence of the influence of the form of government on inter-institutional interactions, in particular, in increasing the pressure of public authorities on civil society. It was established that the contradictions between high standards and the demands of the consumer society caused the support of right-wing conservative populist political forces. It was found that the situation in modern Slovakia shows that the parliamentary republic as a form of government also ensured the transition to democracy and the observance of democratic procedures. It was established that the trends of “non-normative” use of the power potential of the form of state government may indicate the search for a national model of balance between branches of government and key officials. It was concluded that a high level of self-regulation in the political system corresponds to a high level of civil political activity, responsibility and consensus of political elites, professionalism of the political class as a whole.

Two Decades of Women's Affirmative Action in Indonesia: Some Reflections and Recommendations

Democracy essentially requires equal rights between men and women. Both men and women should have equal opportunity to participate in public affairs such as politics. However, women’s political participation remains low compared to men. Women face many obstacles in expressing their political views, particularly in electoral politics. To address the issue, the government has adopted affirmative action by setting a gender quota to enhance women’s political representation. However, the quota does not automatically increase women’s electability parliament. Indonesia is an example of this case. Women’s political representation has never exceeded 30% since the introduction of direct elections. We used a qualitative method for this study. We found that four reasons cause the issue – women’s socio-political capital, the weakness of party institutionalization, the strict political competition among candidates, and voters’ pragmatic behavior during elections. We concluded that there should be severe attempts from various parties – government, political party, and civil society – to increase women’s political representation. Our study matters for mainstreaming gender equality and pushing democracy more substantively. Keywords: affirmative policy, Indonesia, women’s political representation.

Exploration of the Integration Strategy of Course Ideology and Politics in Dance Courses in Universities

In dance courses in universities, it is possible to appropriately integrate ideological and political content, which is of great benefit to improving students’ moral qualities and artistic cultivation. So, every teacher should have a correct attitude towards how to properly introduce these basic concepts into the classroom and explore how to better implement this kind of thinking participation in teaching activities based on the characteristics of university disciplines. This article conducts in-depth research on current dance courses in universities and proposes some targeted solutions on this topic, with the aim of enabling professional teachers to more effectively utilize optimized resources and promote the effective improvement of teaching quality in professional courses.

The manipulation of identity politics in Indonesian electoral democracy today: Between regulations and practices

Electoral contestation in recent Indonesian election periods is faced with the challenge of polarization linked to identity politics, where initially assigned identity is leveraged as tools for political competition. This is a qualitative research, using interviews, observations, and direct group discussion methods to collect data from five different regions in Indonesia. The research focused on the presence of governing regulations and how they develop in complex dynamics. The results showed that identity politics was prevalent in all regions due to mobilization through identity manipulation to gain electoral political advantage. Furthermore, electoral characteristics showed a growing tendency toward polarization, primarily in terms of religion and ethnicity, with some issues related to regionalism, gender, religious affiliations, and family history networks. It was also found that weak regulations on identity manipulation led to increasing permissiveness among political actors, the state, and voters. This made identity issues become natural electoral problems, despite weakening the developing democracy in Indonesia. In this context, future contests in Indonesia are expected to consistently intensify identity politics, with the lack of regulations, permissiveness, and social media serving as the main driving factors.

EXPERT-ANALYTICAL PRODUCT: APPROACHES TO FORMATION AND IMPLEMENTATION IN THE COMMUNICATION ENVIRONMENT OF POLITICAL SECURITY

The article is devoted to the unification of approaches to the analysis of the public information environment, as well as the coordination of efforts to counter information aggression on a decentralized basis. The purpose of the study is to establish the main features and principles of the formation of an expert-analytical product within the framework of strengthening the security capacity of Ukrainian society. The value of a quick asymmetric information response in the form of discrediting the source, disavowing the information provided and/or using errors or mistakes in the information provided to one’s advantage is characterized. It was emphasized that the targeting of political and security content should also take into account the socio-demographic and behavioral characteristics (data) of the community to which the information is directed. The creativity of the expert-analytical security product is analyzed, which means a creative approach to counter hostile informational provocations and invasions. The importance of the principle of responsiveness, which means the compliance of the appearance of content with time dimensions and the requirements of the political and security situation, is revealed. It was found that the appearance of expert political and security materials should precede the events, be carried out according to the plan of media events, as well as within the framework of crisis situations. It was revealed that the empirical nature of the expert-analytical product involves the use of various models for assessing threats to political security. It is proven that the development of various scenarios of expert public content contributes to the development of the political situation in the future in the desired direction. It has been established that the expert-analytical product of public direction (reports, assessments, analytical summaries, etc.) should not only be broadcast in an accessible (understandable) language. It is assumed that the complexity and completeness of information means its completeness in terms of known and unknown facts. It has been established that the value neutrality of communication messages means avoiding the promotion of ideological messages and motivational components, except when such materials are not included in special promotions and operations. It was found that open discussion leaves the possibility of the information consumer to interactively interact with the text of the message and data. It was concluded that a promising direction of information security activity is asymmetric action in relation to operational massive support of political actions of hostile power institutions on the international arena.

Navigating environmental cooperation on air pollution amid political competition in East Asia

Abstract East Asian countries have recently upgraded their regional cooperation for clean air through the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia, with elaborate arrangements for monitoring and capacity-building assistance for multiple pollutants. This represents a departure from the earlier informal regimes with vague arrangements on acid deposition. However, despite this notable shift, this formalization in the regional governance for clean air remains largely unexplored in the existing literature. This study fills this gap by analysing the dynamics of formalization through aid from theories of regime complexity and legalization. It focuses on the decade from 2012 to 2021, employing documentary analysis and interviews. The results reveal that governments actively pursue their state interests by adjusting institutional arrangements through regime competition and selection that drive formalization. Sharing cognition of the hazardousness of multiple pollutants achieved through interactions between regional and global institutions serves as a catalyst for reaching an agreement on the arrangements.

The Privatization of Protest: Demobilization and the Emergence of Political Violence in the Aftermath of Local Protest Campaigns

The processual approach to political violence suggests a close link between nonviolent and violent tactical repertoires. Yet in doing so it excludes cases where violence appears to appear in the absence of public protest activity. This article traces how political violence emerges in the aftermath of local protest campaigns against migrant accommodation. Developing the concept of the privatization of protest, the article shows how the demobilization of protest contributes to a process where grievances are reframed into private frustrations rather than objects of political contention. Transformed as such, persistent patterns of intermittent political violence can sometimes grow out of private interactions, even in the absence of any consistent public protest. Applying the conceptual apparatus of frames, emotions, opportunities and to a paired process tracing of episodes of protest against Swedish migrant accommodation in 2007-2008 and 2012-2017, the article maps the causal mechanisms that create facilitative conditions for violence, sometimes long after the decline of nonviolent protest. Extending its discussion beyond the case of Sweden, it links the processual approach to adjacent discussions on the link between micro- and meso-level causes of political violence.