Political Parties and Elections: Legislating for Representative DemocracyPolitical Parties and Elections presents a comparative analysis of the ways in which advanced industrial democracies seek to regulate the activities of political parties in electoral contests. Actual political practice suggests that parties are crucial actors in democratic elections, yet the nature and extent to which parties are regulated, or even recognized, as participants in the electoral process varies greatly among nations. Author Anika Gauja analyzes the electoral laws of five key common law democracies with similar parliamentary and representative traditions, similar levels of economic and political development, yet with significantly different electoral provisions: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Using the relationship between law and politics as a lens, the book focuses specifically on the ways in which these jurisdictions seek to regulate the behavior of their political parties as the product of a broader normative vision of how representative democracy ought to function. In its subject matter, comparative scope, and interdisciplinary theoretical framework, this book examines not only electoral law but also ancillary legislation such as funding regulations, associations and corporations law, and constitutional provisions. It also analyzes the case law that guides the interpretation of this legislation. Political Parties and Elections represents an innovative body of research, comparing for the first time the electoral-legal regimes of a significant number of common law nations. |
Contents
1 | |
2 Political Parties and Constitutions | 23 |
3 The Gradual Legal Recognition of Political Parties | 43 |
4 Requirements for Party Registration and Internal Organization | 65 |
5 Regulating Party Candidate Selection Contests | 99 |
6 Parties and the Conduct of Elections | 127 |
7 The Public Funding of Election Campaigns and Political Parties | 141 |
Other editions - View all
Political Parties and Elections: Legislating for Representative Democracy Dr Anika Gauja Limited preview - 2013 |
Political Parties and Elections: Legislating for Representative Democracy Anika Gauja Limited preview - 2016 |
Political Parties and Elections: Legislating for Representative Democracy Anika Gauja No preview available - 2010 |
Common terms and phrases
advertising amendment argues australia australian electoral commission australian labor Party Biezen branch stacking broadcasting Broadcasting Act 1989 Canada Attorney Canada Elections Act canadian candidate selection contests cent chapter citizens committee Commonwealth Electoral Act competition concerning Constitution Act 1986 constitutional contributions corporations debate decision donations election campaigns election expenses Electoral Act 1993 electoral contest electoral law electoral process electoral system example federal Figueroa Forcese and Freeman freedom functions gatekeeper provisions Gauja Geddis independent interests internal intra-party judicial justice labour Party legal regulation legislative legislature liberal democracies major party membership national Party nomination normative Parliament parliamentary participation party law party members party organization party registration party system party’s political parties potential primary Proposition 198 public funding recognition referendum registered parties registered political parties regulation of political regulatory representation representative democracy requirements role rules significant supreme court threshold United kingdom vote voters Zealand