Party is Political party: definition, concept, types and characteristics

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

Party is a concept translated from Latin meaning "part". That is, it is part of some larger community. A party is a term that, long before the emergence of associations in their modern form, denoted groups of people. They competed with each other either in the sphere of power itself, or in influencing it.

History of parties

Even among the ancient Greek thinkers, we find references to these associations. Aristotle, for example, wrote that in Attica in the 6th century BC. e. there was a struggle between the parties of the inhabitants of the mountains, the plains and the coast. Therefore, their formation (its beginning) can be attributed to this time. Parties in the Middle Ages were groupings that were mostly temporary. It is known, for example, that in medieval England there was a war between two "parties", namely the Scarlet and White Roses. However, the emergence of their prototypes in the modern sense of the word can only be discussed from the moment of the bourgeois revolutions. We are talking, first of all, about the revolution in England in the 17th century. Party isassociation, which appeared as a result of the fact that the absolutist functions of the state were subjected to limitation. An autonomous personality arose who wanted to participate in the life of society, to influence the government. It was recognized that the presence of diverse interests in society is legitimate. After that, a political party appeared. This is a special tool designed to represent all these interests of people in the power system.

Main features of parties

There is a special science of partology that studies them. Political scientists have not yet come to a consensus on what constitutes a political party. It can only be noted that at the moment its generally accepted definition does not exist. However, we can identify the most significant features that separate it from other political organizations. These include the following:

- minimal formal organization;

- joint activity program;

- the presence of a special social status, including the desire to directly influence political life, as well as an important role in the conduct of elections, in the preparation of the election campaign;

- a special position in the state, including the connection of the party with the elements of its mechanism, participation in the functioning and formation of government mechanisms;

- social base;

- a special legal regime, which means the normative regulation of the activities of the party and its special constitutional and legal status.

General definition of the party

Based on these features, a general definition can be given. Party - a voluntary political organization, which includes persons who have common ideals and interests, and which seeks to obtain political power or participate in its implementation. The main distinguishing feature that distinguishes it from other clubs, movements and organizations is precisely participation in the mechanism of power, a claim to it. Although this sign is the most important, parties can take different positions in relation to the existing power. For example, they may be in opposition, advocate the overthrow of the established order. Opposition can be directed not only against the system of the state as a whole, but also against the policy of the current government. The party can also take part in governing bodies, in the government, act as a partner of other parties. In addition, she is able to single-handedly form a government. Parties, having achieved this, in a number of cases seek to strengthen their monopoly on power, while violating the rule of law, that is, eliminating the opposition. In this case, we are talking about the identification of the party with the state.

Three levels of party

Considering the structure of the modern party, the following three levels should be distinguished:

1. The highest level is representation in the system of power. These are officials working in the state apparatus who have received their posts due to party affiliation: a member of parliament, a governor, a president, a party deputy.

2. The next level is Intermediate. It includes the official party organization.

3. The lowest level is the bloc of voters. This isa mass base that provides support for the party's candidates during the election campaign. Note that belonging to this group is based more on declared commitment. Official involvement is less significant - it is not necessary to be included in the corresponding list. Parties can be supported without signing official papers.

Types of parties

Let's move on to the types of political parties. They express their ideological basis, social nature, the main social and role function of a particular party, the nature of its methods of activity and internal structure.

Party parties

They, according to M. Duverger, were formed as a result of the evolution of political clubs. Their main task is to mobilize influential people in a particular constituency in order to ensure the support of a large number of voters representing different segments of the population and having different ideological orientations. Many modern European parties with a conservative orientation are of this type. They are characterized by free membership, that is, there is no system for registering members, their list. These parties are also marked by the presence of regular contributions. In addition, their composition is unstable. The activity of parties of this type is manifested mainly during elections. Case Studies: US Democratic and Republican Party

Mass parties

Mass parties arose as a result of the emergence of a universalsuffrage. They are large organizations with a high degree of ideologization and a complex internal structure. These parties form their social base mainly from the lower strata of the population. Basically they are socialist, communist and social democratic. They have a fixed membership, party discipline. They are characterized by a high degree of organization. They operate on a permanent basis, have an extensive management apparatus and many local organizations. The orientation of such a party is to recruit new members. Thus, political and financial problems are solved. A specific example is the Russian Communist Party.

Closed and open games

This division is based on how members are recruited. In open parties, entry is not regulated in any way. In closed ones, formalities and conditions are supposed to be observed: questionnaires, recommendations, the decision of the local leadership of the party. Strict regulation of reception in the past was characteristic of the CPSU and other socialist and communist parties. Today there is a problem of narrowing the social base. The main part of the parties has become an open type.

Classification by place in the political system

Depending on what place the party occupies in the political system, there are two types of them.

1. Ruling. When they come to power, the program of the party begins to be realized, the government is formed. Party becomes ruling as a result of legislative electionsstates. However, it does not have to be one - there may be several. In this case, the ruling parties form a coalition.

2. opposition parties. These are those who were defeated in the last elections or were not admitted to them by the current regime. They focus their activities on criticizing the course set by the government, as well as on creating alternative programs for the development of society. Opposition parties can be divided, in turn, into those that play a significant role in public life and those that do not. For example, on November 7, 2001, the US presidential election was held. As a result, the Republicans became the ruling party, the opposition (playing a significant role) - the Democrats, and about 20 opposition parties were not playing a significant role. There is another division as well. Among the opposition parties, there are legal ones, that is, those operating within the framework of the law, registered; illegal; and not prohibited, but also not registered.

Classification by ideology

In the ideological sense, the following types are distinguished:

- ideological and political, built on the basis of ideology: social democratic, communist, fascist, conventional, liberal;

- problem-oriented, which are concentrated around a specific problem or a group of them (women's parties, green parties);

- electoral - inter-ideological, and sometimes non-ideological organizations that have a wholeset of goals and aimed at attracting the masses of the population.

Political parties of the early 20th century relied precisely on ideology. However, today the situation has changed. In Western European society today ideology is losing its significance, whereas earlier it was a powerful weapon of the parties. In our time, informatization and technocratization are taking place, a super-ideology of science, rationalism and knowledge is emerging. Therefore, modern parties have to fit into new conditions that require significant political risk. As a result of the weakening of ideology, the active actions of the media, the influence of electoral technologies on party elections, etc., they are losing a stable electorate. Therefore, according to a number of political scientists, a new type of them is being created in Western Europe. Electoral-professional parties are emerging.

Electoral professional parties

Their distinguishing features are as follows. These are associations of individuals, small in number, who have special training and are skilled in professional work with potential voters. In their activities, they go directly to the electorate. At the same time, these parties are financed through special funds and interest groups. They are characterized by personalized leadership. This means that each party leader understands which particular interest group he is associated with, for whom and with whom he works. Such associations are reminiscent of "information-technocratic mutants" ramming the electoral system.

In conclusion, we note that the typologypolitical parties in general is rather conditional. In fact, each of them may have features that are common to different species.