Sean Mueller
Bern University, Institute für Politikwissenschaft, Faculty Member
ABSTRACT Swiss parties are said to be “vertically integrated” but with high autonomy of the cantonal branches (Thorlakson 2009). Swiss parties, in essence, are cantonal parties. But what scale of party authority within cantonal parties?... more
ABSTRACT Swiss parties are said to be “vertically integrated” but with high autonomy of the cantonal branches (Thorlakson 2009). Swiss parties, in essence, are cantonal parties. But what scale of party authority within cantonal parties? Does intra-party federalism continue to spiral downward in the classic sense of “local decentralisation” (Duverger 1959, 53)? Or are parties truly “regional parties”, at the expense of local party autonomy? This paper is a case study of Canton Glarus, in East Switzerland. The question of multilevel intra-party organisation (Deschouwer 2003) is analysed through data from party statutes and interviews with party leaders in Glarus. The paper finds that parties are decentralised in parallel with intracantonal federalism, but ideologies (liberal, Christian-democrat, socialist, ecological) attenuate that causal influence. The recent rescaling of electoral districts and a radical merging of local authorities have lead to an even greater cantonal-local division of tasks. But more parties competing for less seats has not led to a greater “cantonalisation” of parties. Party organisation in Glarus can be classified into “regional” (SP and BDP), “federal” (Greens), and “inter-local” (CVP, FDP, and SVP).
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Based on a variety of contemporary debates on federal theory Understanding Federalism and Federation honours Michael Burgess’ contribution to the study of these topics through a selection of approaches, theories, debates and... more
Based on a variety of contemporary debates on federal theory Understanding Federalism and Federation honours Michael Burgess’ contribution to the study of these topics through a selection of approaches, theories, debates and interpretations. Gathering contributors from diverse subfields to synthesize current debates it offers a snapshot of the immense range of current research on federalism and federation. Leading authors debate key issues such as American federalism, Canada and the role of Quebec, the latest insights into comparative federalism and federation, the European Union as a federal project and the analysis of constitutional courts in federal systems. Different theoretical and empirical fields and perspectives are brought together, synthesizing major findings and addressing emerging issues and these topics are analysed through multiple lenses to provide new insights, original approaches and much-needed theoretical and empirical data on federalism and federation.
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Regionalist parties matter. Over the past 40 years, they have played an ever-larger role in West-European democracies. Because of their relevance and temporal persistence, their achievements have become increasingly visible not only in... more
Regionalist parties matter. Over the past 40 years, they have played an ever-larger role in West-European democracies. Because of their relevance and temporal persistence, their achievements have become increasingly visible not only in the electoral arena, but also as regards holding office and policy-making. This book enhances our understanding of these different dimensions of success as it analyses various types of regionalist party success. Beyond conventional perspectives, the focus of this book is also on how the dimensions of success are related to each other, and in particular to what extent electoral and office success – jointly or alternatively – contribute to policy success. Adopting a common theoretical framework and combining the in-depth knowledge of experts from different countries, each chapter explores the evolution and impact of regionalist parties in regional or federal states, that is, the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, and Switzerland. This allows for a comprehensive and comparative analysis of one of the main political challenges within West-European democracies.
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Part of the project Why Centralization and Decentralization in Federations?, this article studies dynamic de/centralization in Switzerland since 1848 and seeks to account for the patterns observed. It shows that, overall, there has been a... more
Part of the project Why Centralization and Decentralization in Federations?, this article studies dynamic de/centralization in Switzerland since 1848 and seeks to account for the patterns observed. It shows that, overall, there has been a wide-ranging process of legislative centralization, whereas the cantons have retained considerable administrative and, especially, fiscal autonomy. The principal instrument of dynamic centralization has been constitutional change, followed by the enactment of framework legislation by the federal government. The process has unfolded primarily through frequent steps of a small magnitude and occurred throughout the 160-year life of the federation. Modernization, market integration, changing patterns of collective identification, and expectations concerning the role of government appear to have played a particularly important causal role. The multilingual and bi-confessional nature of the country has not presented a major obstacle to this centralization dynamic, particularly since World War II, with the French-speaking minority becoming increasingly pro-centralization. This article seeks to contribute to a deeper understanding of the evolution of Switzerland's federal system by offering a novel conceptualization and detailed measurement of dynamic de/centralization since 1848 as well as an analysis of the patterns observed. The evolution of the Swiss federation has been addressed by several scholars, comparativists, and students of Switzerland alike, with most of them arguing that the country has undergone an extensive process of centralization. However, no systematic study across different policy and fiscal areas and over the entire life span of the federation had hitherto, to our knowledge, been conducted. Our article reports the findings of such a study, part of a wider comparative analysis of dynamic de/centralization in six federations. Among comparativists, as early as the mid-1940s, Wheare (1946, 252–253) emphasized that many new powers had been conferred on the central government. Twenty years later, Sawer (1969, 97–979) also noted a centralizing trend but pointed out that the cantons had retained considerable administrative and fiscal autonomy. Among Swiss-politics specialists, Rappard (1948, 380) remarked on the