Semi-presidential Research Articles

Presidential Activism on Social Media: Multidimensional Analysis and Empirical Examination of Presidential Twitter Use in Europe

Since the advent of mass media, ‘going public’ has been a key tool in the strategic inventory of presidents seeking to promote their policies to politicians and the public. Over the last decade, social media has offered presidents and their office with a new platform to address the nation directly without relying on traditional media gatekeepers. Nevertheless, both ‘going public’ strategies and presidents’ use of social media have almost exclusively been researched in the context of the presidential systems. The aim of this article is to extend research and offer the first systematic study of presidential Twitter use in European semi-presidential systems. We conceptualise presidential Twitter use as a form of presidential activism that is complementary to the use of formal powers or informal attempts to influence policy. Whereas the latter are driven by institutional or partisan conflict, going public strategies and presidential Twitter use primarily address societal concerns and, hence, are motivated by contextual factors outside the core realm of party politics. Instead, we should expect social conflict and societal grievances to determine demand and supply of presidential Twitter use. We test our propositions using a new dataset of tweets by presidents in European semi-presidential systems 2010–2020.

Intra-Executive Dynamics and Presidential Popularity in Semi-Presidential Regimes

In semi-presidential regimes presidents need to strike a balance between representing the nation and sharing power with prime ministers. The coexistence of the executives may pose challenges to the presidents, but it could also strengthen their public standing. Yet we lack information on how party-political shifts and clashes between the executives shape public opinion on presidents. Covering the period 2000–2020 and including presidents from the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Poland and Portugal, this article reveals that presidential popularity is influenced by the political weakness of the government, as both weak and strong presidents’ popularity ratings increased during minority governments, and by the constitutional strength of the presidency, as people seem to tolerate more confrontational involvement mostly from those presidents with stronger constitutional powers. The impact of cohabitation, in turn, appears to be more context-specific, sometimes benefitting the president’s public standing, while at other times harming it. The results thus suggest that being politically opposed to the government may boost the president’s political capital, but only under certain circumstances.

Introducing the comparative semi-presidential database (CSPD)

AbstractIn this article, we introduce a new dataset—the Comparative Semi-Presidential Database (CSPD)—covering classifications of semi-presidential regimes. In contrast to other databases, the CSPD offers several classifications based on different definitions of semi-presidential regimes along with subtypes of semi-presidential regimes. We use definitions developed by Elgie (in: Elgie (ed) Semi-presidentialism in Europe, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1999), Cheibub et al. (Public Choice 143:67–101, 2010), Shugart (French Politics 3(3):323–351, 2005) and Shugart and Carey (Presidents and assemblies: constitutional design and electoral dynamics, Cambridge University Press, New York, 1992). Additionally, we present a modified definition of semi-presidential regimes based on the conceptual discussion in the field. The database covers all independent states from 1900 to 2021. Using empirical analyses, we compare the classifications, the importance of conceptualisation and presenting our measurement for semi-presidential regimes.

Trust in president – a different case? Individual-level patterns of trust in political executives in Central and Eastern Europe

ABSTRACT People seem to trust the president more than other national political institutions. In the context of semi-presidential regimes, it is plausible that the role of the president being “above party politics” is an explanatory factor behind this pattern. This study challenges the argument by analysing the impact of citizens' party preferences and attitudes towards the political system on trust in president in select CEE countries. The results confirm that trust in president is often context specific and cannot be disassociated from partisan factors. In general, similar patterns are found between trust in president and trust in prime minister.

Semi-presidentialism and war: executive leadership models in Ukraine during Zelenskyi’s presidency

ABSTRACT Following Russia's invasion, Ukraine exemplifies presidential leadership during full-scale war. This study examines executive coordination from Zelenskyi's mid-2019 election to the February 2022–July 2023 war period, using media sources and official data. It introduces three new leadership models – figurehead-leader, arbiter-management and leader-implementer – to capture evolving intra-executive relations in semi-presidential systems. Power centralisation around the president has accelerated, fitting the leader-implementer model. However, in accordance with the arbiter-manager model, a stricter division of labour, especially in domestic policy, is evident. Despite semi-presidentialism's perceived conflict-proneness, the study shows it can function efficiently and allow executive flexibility during significant crisis.

NEW PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM OF TÜRKİYE: A SAMPLE MODEL FOR STABLE AND EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT?

Mongolian semi-presidential political system which has long suffered from institutional dilemmas and instabilities is very similar to the former political system of Türkiye, which was so-called parliamentary system, but worked just like a semi-presidential system. This paper will explore the newly adopted Turkish presidential system as a search to find out whether or not it would be an applicable model for the cases like Mongolia which have long suferred from political instability. In this regard, I will first draw the situation of Türkiye under the former parliamentary system and show the vulnerabilty of the political system until 2017 when presidential system was adopted. Then, I willl indicate basic characteristics of newly adopted presidential system of Türkiye and how it deals with gridlock. I will argue that Turkish presidential system is a unique political system which brought about stability and efficiency, and thus may be a sample model for the cases like Mongolia having inefficient and instable political environment.

Смешанная модель: Макс Вебер и реальность

The article is devoted to the analysis of the semi-presidential, or mixed, model (system) of power. This structure is of a particular interest, not least due to the fact that it creates favorable conditions for the authoritarian evolution. Of course, an authoritarian regime can form in both the presidential and parliamentary systems, but the semi-p residential model holds much greater potential for such a development of events. The main flaw of the semi-presidential system is that the president is normatively placed above all institutions of power, but at the same time retains prerogatives that do not allow him to remain politically impartial. This position of the president in the system of power distorts his political self-identification. He begins to perceive himself as an analogue of an absolute monarch and monopolizes power via legal means. One of the fathers of the mixed model was Max Weber, whose idea of a plebiscitary president marked the beginning of the formation of a new type of a republican form of government, first enshrined in the Constitution of (Weimar) Germany in 1919. This is why the author thoroughly examines Weber’s concept, his role in the development of the Weimar Constitution, and compares his views with the normative model reflected in the Constitution. The article shows that although the Weimar Constitution did not adopt all of Weber’s principles and moved much further away from the model of a presidential republic, the main Weberian ideas were included in the form of certain norms. The final part of the article presents a number of critical considerations about certain provisions of the Weberian concept and the Weimar model of power.

Political corruption in the Arab Mediterranean countries: an innovative typology

ABSTRACT Corruption is a major challenge in the Arab Mediterranean countries (AMCs). The fight against it was a key point in the Arab uprisings, yet since then and despite the international community’s attempts to support anti-corruption strategies, the governments of the AMCs have not been able to address effectively the demands of their population. The article compares the anti-corruption initiatives in four AMCs: two republican semi-presidential systems (Egypt, Tunisia) and two constitutional monarchies (Jordan, Morocco). It focuses on their fight against political corruption, which has different forms. To reduce corruption, policymakers advocate the decentralization of power, as it leads to more accountability and transparency. The article unpacks the idea of decentralization and asks to what extent it contributes to reducing political corruption in the region. In doing so, the article produces a new typology that adds two important factors that contribute to a better understanding of the links between anti-corruption initiatives and decentralization: the challenges to the political survival of the government and the type of external support to fight corruption. The findings show that decentralization measures frequently result in administrative deconcentration rather than the decentralization of decision-making. Thus, they reproduce political corruption in the region.

Rethinking representative democracy in Croatia

The article analyses the development of representative democracy in Croatia from its independence to today. During the 1990s, Croatia changed its electoral system several times and had a bicameral parliament. With the constitutional changes implemented in 2001, the legislative power was organized on a unicameral principle. At the same time, the previous semi-presidential system was replaced by a parliamentary one. These changes represent only the basic framework within which representative democracy in Croatia developed over time. An important milestone in this development was the introduction of preferential voting at the national elections in 2015, which allowed the voters to vote for a particular list and a specific candidate on that list. According to some, this improved the problematic state of inner-party democracy, although, for others, the reform was not far-reaching enough. Given that representative democracy does not function in a vacuum, the article also considers the impact of direct democracy on the functioning of representative democracy in Croatia. Referring to the Croatian experience, it argues that this complementary form of democracy had a positive impact on the quality of representative democracy in the country. Nevertheless, in the face of representative democracy in Croatia, many open questions still need to be addressed. The most important one is how to increase the turnout in the elections, which is still comparatively low and arguably related to the low trust in politics.

President’s constitutional powers and public activism: a focused analysis of presidential speeches under Finland’s two presidencies

Changes in formal powers of political actors like presidents are expected to impact their behavior. This study examines speeches that presidents can utilize for a variety of purposes ranging from topical reflections to new political initiatives and criticism of the government and political parties. In semi-presidential regimes, presidents are often constitutionally weaker than governments, but their popularity opens the possibility of using the public platform for swaying the minds of citizens or politicians. We analyze the tone and content of Finnish presidents’ New Year’s messages and parliamentary speeches from 1932 to 2023. To contribute to the long-standing literature on regime effects, we gauge the impact of Finland’s comprehensive constitutional reform that stripped off most powers of the presidency that was formerly considered among the strongest in Europe. The results show that presidential activity changed already in the mid-1990s when the reform was still underway, and presidents appointed since then speak systematically less about domestic policy and emphasize national unity and citizens, indicating that constitutionally weaker presidents recognize their jurisdictional limits and lean more on their role as directly elected heads of state operating above political parties.

Executive-legislative interface and functioning of political institutions in Romania

The purpose of this study is to discuss the struggle between the prime minister and the president to exercise legislative and executive power. According to the constitution of Romania, there is a clear division of power between the President and the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is the head of government but the President also plays a key role in the country. There are many examples of interference in legislative work by the President of Romania. The paper discusses power sharing between the legislative and executive power of the Prime minister and the President of Romania. Because of the semi-presidential system in the country, the President of Romania has equal legislative power as the Prime minister. This has in practice led to major contradictions in the functioning of the Romanian political system. The paper analyses the substantial power that the Constitution vests the President with affects the Prime Minister’s role in the country. That is why Romania’s democratic journey has been one of power struggle between the President and the Prime Minister. Apart from the many conflicts between the President and Prime Minister, there is a massive debate on corruption which has also critically affected institution-building in this new democracy. There are discussions about the pillar of democratic bodies which is fragile and lacks trust in political institutions.

Gender affinity effects between female voters and women leaders in parliamentary elections: Cross-national evidence (1996-2016)

An increasing amount of literature has demonstrated that party leaders affect voting behavior in parliamentary elections. However, the electoral impact of female leadership of political parties has been under-researched. The gender affinity hypothesis suggests that when women run for presidential or prime ministerial office, women are more likely than men to vote for them. Using data from the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems project, we tested gender affinity effects between female voters and female party leaders in mixed-sex legislative elections, that is, elections involving at least one female party candidate for prime minister, in parliamentary and semi-presidential systems. We analyzed 50 elections held from 1996 to 2016 in 24 countries. The results showed that female leaders were better evaluated by women and that women were more likely than men to vote for them. However, the gender affinity effects were small and not largely conditioned or not conditioned at all by other factors, such as some voters’ characteristics and electoral setting.

From Authoritarianism to Democracy in Poland Catholic church, the Union Movement Solidarity and the History of Democratic Change

The paper examines the complex process of transition from a non-democratic to a democratic regime and the consolidation of the government system in Poland. The specificity of the democratic transition in Poland, in relation to other transitions in Central and Eastern Europe, is reflected in the nature of the non-democratic regime, which was more authoritarian than (post)totalitarian. Hence, while the communist regime was in force, social pluralism managed to be preserved to the highest possible extent. Preserved social and even political pluralism later contributed to success in the transition process. The military-party regime in Poland, after Gorbachev came to power in the USSR, applied the strategy of getting out that took the form of negotiations between the political position and the political opposition at the Round Table. The compromise ended the negotiations and brought about semi-free elections, on one, and the controlled democratic transition in Poland, on the other hand. The event was accelerated when, in semi-free elections, the popular Solidarity movement defeated the then-ruling communist group. The provisions of the Agreement were fully respected by both sides. In the end, after the Second World War, it was Poland whose citizens were the first to overthrow at the regular elections. The Round Table Agreement established the function of a strong president, who was directly elected. That function was first used by Leh Valensa, the leader of Solidarity. The extreme proportional election method and the fragmentation of Solidarity, in terms of the creation of several political parties, resulted in the establishment of a multi-party semi-presidential system. The change in the electoral system and the inappropriate tactics of the political parties that emerged from Solidarity enabled the left-wing government to come to power and ensured the post of president to a post-communist candidate (Darmanovi?, 2002). The transfer of power from Solidarity to their former rivals, who fundamentally changed, managed to end peacefully and Poland slowly entered the phase of consolidation of the government system.

A Comparative Study on the Semi-Presidential Government System: The Cases of the Russian Federation and Post-Communist Poland

According to the widely accepted view, the existence of a government accountable to the parliament and a head of state elected by the people and endowed with powerful powers is sufficient to define the system as semi-presidential. However, although there are many unique definitions and qualifications in itself, it is not possible to talk about the existence of a uniform semi-presidential system. The reason for this is that countries interpret the government system within the framework of their own political culture and administrative tradition. Therefore, government systems are not typical models and can take different forms within the states' own administrative traditions. In this direction, in this study, the semi-presidential model of the Russian Federation and the semi-presidential model of post-communist Poland will be examined comparatively. Making a comparative study on the semi-presidential government systems of Poland and Russia will not be a comparison only in terms of revealing the differences, as it is thought. This study aims to make a contribution to the studies of the government system by comparing the states of Poland and Russia, which use the semi-presidential government system in a unique way. In addition, the main purpose of this study is to reveal that each country interprets the system of government it uses within the framework of its tradition of governance and political cultures.

Role and Powers of the Non-Executive President in the Republic of Armenia: Unfinished Constitutional Transition from a Semi-Presidential System of Governance to the Armenian Parliamentary Democracy

With the constitutional change of 2015, Armenia made an uncomplete transition from the semi-presidential system of governance to parliamentary democracy. Within the first chapter, this article presents the constitutional role, functions of the President of Armenia, and the powers vested in the President in accordance with the constitutional architecture that has been in place since 2015. The adequacy of constitutional status attributed to the President as well as the scope of the powers and duties are assessed given the formation of the Government, election and resignation of the Prime Minister, applicable electoral system, applicable regime of the dissolution of the Parliament, formation of autonomous bodies stipulated by the Constitution (Central Bank, Central Electoral Commission etc.), the given solutions in deadlock situations when the political majority is not able to secure 3/5th of the votes and elect a member of the politically neutral body, the powers given to the parliamentary minority, and the quality of the political discourse. The second chapter discusses what are the main expectations from the President’s office, what is the aim of establishing a non-executive president based on the nature of the Armenian parliamentary democracy and adopted constitutional architecture? Considering the models set out in the guidelines provided by the International IDEA as well as based on the legal comparative research, the second chapter suggests what discretionary powers should be given to the President so that he or she can act as constitutional arbiter but meanwhile prevented from becoming a player in the political game.

프랑스 이원정부제(혼합정부제)의 시사점

The reason why the Constitution exists is ultimately to guarantee the basic rights of the people. State power is only a means to guarantee that. Therefore, the issue of the form of government on how to organize and exercise the power of the state should be the primary goal of guaranteeing the basic rights and improving the welfare of the people.
 In the meantime, various proposals have been presented regarding the constitutional amendment of the form of government, such as the dual executive system, the US-type pure presidential system, and the parliamentary cabinet system, etc. Among them, amending the Constitution of the dual executive system has risen rapidly since 2008, and in 2009, the National Assembly Constitutional Research Advisory Committee proposed the dual executive system as its first proposal, and in 2014, the National Assembly Constitutional Amendment Advisory Committee proposed it adding to the provisions of the Constitution as a constitutional amendment.
 The reasons for Korea's interest in the dual executive system can be summarized as follows: ➀ the need to divide power in the current presidential system, ➁ promoting the realization of responsible politics, ➂ satisfying the desire of the people for a direct presidential system, and ➃ the similarity between the current Constitution and the dual executive system, including the prime ministerial system, etc.
 France is a representative country adopting the dual executive system, and in the case of France, regime change is frequent. In the principle way that whether or not a regime change is well carried out is a criterion for diagnosing the soundness of a country's democracy, while democratic management of the state by the current government is also important for a regime change, it must be accompanied by institutional support to ensure that regime change occurs in a timely manner and following the will of the people.
 In this respect, the French dual executive system is considered that it is institutionally more suitable than other forms of government to realize the political will of the people as sovereigns in that both the presidential election and the National Assembly election can practically realize regime change.
 Each form of government has advantages and disadvantages. In principle, it was said that no matter how good the clothes are, they must fit my body to be my ones. Depending on the history, unique culture, and political situation of each country, the advantages in any country can also act as disadvantages in other countries. Therefore, even when discussing the form of government, not only the institution itself should be analyzed, but the history, unique culture, and political situation of each country should be analyzed equally along with institutional theories.

Confrontational or ‘Statespersonlike’ Style? Examining Finnish and French Presidents’ Public Speeches and Messages, 2000–2020

Presidents can use public speeches for a variety of purposes from rallying support for their initiatives to attacking their opponents or building societal consensus. Contrary to general expectations regarding dual executive systems, this article suggests that presidents in semi-presidential regimes can benefit politically and in terms of popularity from ‘statespersonlike’ behaviour, and thus, they should generally refrain from negative and contentious statements. Examining the tone and content of formal speeches and informal messages of Finnish and French presidents from 2000 to 2020, the study shows that under varying constitutional frameworks and general practical expectations, the presidents in both countries by and large employ a ‘statespersonlike’ style in their speeches. Presidential speeches primarily express a positive tone, and they contain few references to other state institutions and economy and other governmental domains. Instead, presidents typically seek to portray themselves as guardians of national interest, with foreign policy and national unity emphasized in the speeches.

Routine Presidential Activism by Going Public under Semi-Presidential and Parliamentary Regimes

Presidential research commonly focuses on the most prominent cases of going public by presidents in semi-presidential regimes: such as expressing a lack of trust in the cabinet members. However, it is also important to understand the day-to-day functioning of semi-presidential republics and routine efforts by the presidents to insert themselves into government decisions. Moreover, presidents in parliamentary republics may also try to influence the government through the power of the public word. In this article, we conceptualize going public as an instance when a president weighs in on the performance of the cabinet and/or individual minister in the media. We analyze the focus and intensity of these instances in semi-presidential (Lithuania) and parliamentary (Latvia) regimes. Our main finding is that on average, presidents are more routinely active in public under semi-presidentialism. We also find that the intensity and focus of presidential attention on the cabinet are highly correlated to the media attention. Furthermore, presidents go public more often during the first year of their terms and pay more attention to foreign and defense policy than to other areas. Our results tend to support the presidency-centered arguments that emphasize the institutional prerogatives and political culture in the explanation of presidential activism.

Presidential Activism and Success in Foreign and Defence Policy: A Study of Portugal’s Premier-Presidential Regime

This article investigates presidents’ foreign and defence policy activism under Portugal’s premier-presidential system from 1982 to 2021. First, the article discusses the extant literature on intra-executive conflicts in semi-presidential systems. Then, it provides an overview of Portugal’s experience with semi-presidentialism since 1976 and the powers of the Portuguese president. The third section describes all significant foreign and defence policy presidential interventions from 1982 to 2021 that resulted in disputes with the prime minister. This section estimates presidents’ and prime ministers’ ex-ante preferences over the issues at stake. We verify which preference is closest to the ex-post content of the policy implemented – if it is the president’s, it counts as a presidential win. We identify the formal and informal means by which presidents acted. Informal means are essentially going public tactics. In addition, we inductively pin down the necessary and sufficient conditions under which presidents intervene and succeed. The article’s main findings are two: first, the president’s second term, absence of a strictly unified executive and a majority cabinet are separately necessary but jointly sufficient for presidential interventions to occur; second, formal powers are a necessary but insufficient condition for presidential victory. Finally, we speculate on the policy, institutional, and electoral consequences of presidential activism.

Presentation of the book tagged: ((The balance between constitutional institutions in presidential and semi-presidential systems)) a comparative study

This book is one of the books that deals with a very important topic, which is the balance between constitutional institutions in presidential and semi-presidential systems - and what is meant by the latter is mixed systems - and the author started in the introduction to this book by emphasizing the agreement of jurists that the state has three pillars: the people, Territory, authority, and political power are vested in the head of state, his deputy, and his assistants in the presidential system, and the head of state, the cabinet, and ministers in the semi-presidential system (the mixed system). And the author indicated that the presidential system appeared in the late eighteenth century in the Constitution of the United States of America, specifically in 1789, and the most important characteristic of the presidential system: (unilateral executive power (institution), the election of the head of state by the people, relative separation between institutions and balance between them, and the absence of mutual influence between institutions).