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Oppositional Pre-electoral Coalition Formation in Authoritarian Regimes

Wahman, Michael LU (2010) International Studies Association Annual Convention, 2010
Abstract
Empirical and theoretical literature on elections in authoritarian regimes has illustrated the importance of oppositional cohesion. It has been argued that these elections are more likely to result in positive democratic effects as well as oppositional victory if the opposition has

formed a unified pre-electoral coalition.



Still, our knowledge is limited when it comes to explaining why and when these coalitions are formed. This study takes stock of the vast theoretical literature on government coalition formation, in the predominantly western democratic context. It is argued that it is not reasonable to perceive coalition building as a completely random process, but that certain

structures affects... (More)
Empirical and theoretical literature on elections in authoritarian regimes has illustrated the importance of oppositional cohesion. It has been argued that these elections are more likely to result in positive democratic effects as well as oppositional victory if the opposition has

formed a unified pre-electoral coalition.



Still, our knowledge is limited when it comes to explaining why and when these coalitions are formed. This study takes stock of the vast theoretical literature on government coalition formation, in the predominantly western democratic context. It is argued that it is not reasonable to perceive coalition building as a completely random process, but that certain

structures affects the incentives for creating coalitions.



In a logistic regression analysis of 104 authoritarian elections in the period 1989-2004, it is shown that policy positions among oppositional parties together with incumbent economic performance is especially associated with the prospects of pre-electoral coalition building.

Electoral institutions do, however, have a surprisingly low effect on the probability of pre-electoral coalition formation, especially among electoral authoritarian countries with a low degree of electoral experience. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to conference
publication status
unpublished
subject
keywords
authoritarianism, coalitions, democratization, Elections, economic performance, policy positions
conference name
International Studies Association Annual Convention, 2010
conference location
New Orleans, United States
conference dates
2010-02-17 - 2010-02-20
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
6343725a-fa6a-4a25-b53b-249028356552 (old id 1544511)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 14:10:20
date last changed
2018-11-21 21:18:42
@misc{6343725a-fa6a-4a25-b53b-249028356552,
  abstract     = {{Empirical and theoretical literature on elections in authoritarian regimes has illustrated the importance of oppositional cohesion. It has been argued that these elections are more likely to result in positive democratic effects as well as oppositional victory if the opposition has <br/><br>
formed a unified pre-electoral coalition. <br/><br>
 <br/><br>
Still, our knowledge is limited when it comes to explaining why and when these coalitions are formed. This study takes stock of the vast theoretical literature on government coalition formation, in the predominantly western democratic context. It is argued that it is not reasonable to perceive coalition building as a completely random process, but that certain <br/><br>
structures affects the incentives for creating coalitions. <br/><br>
 <br/><br>
In a logistic regression analysis of 104 authoritarian elections in the period 1989-2004, it is shown that policy positions among oppositional parties together with incumbent economic performance is especially associated with the prospects of pre-electoral coalition building. <br/><br>
Electoral institutions do, however, have a surprisingly low effect on the probability of pre-electoral coalition formation, especially among electoral authoritarian countries with a low degree of electoral experience.}},
  author       = {{Wahman, Michael}},
  keywords     = {{authoritarianism; coalitions; democratization; Elections; economic performance; policy positions}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  title        = {{Oppositional Pre-electoral Coalition Formation in Authoritarian Regimes}},
  year         = {{2010}},
}