Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Human rights --- Democracy --- Democratization --- New democracies. --- Economic assistance, American. --- Government policy --- United States --- Foreign relations

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Many residents of the Middle East - and more recently, Western powers - have placed great hope in democratization in the region. Yet authoritarianism remains the norm and movement towards democracy is both slow and uneven. The Struggle over Democracy in the Middle East examines democracy and democratization in the light of regional realities rather than the wishful thinking of outsiders. Specialists from the region analyze democratic prospects in the region, while accomplished scholars from the United States and the United Kingdom analyze Western policy, providing a wide-ra

Democratization --- Democracy --- Democratic consolidation --- Democratic transition --- Political science --- New democracies --- Arab countries --- Middle East --- Politics and government

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

"This important text explores the widespread contention that new challenges and obstacles have arisen to democratization, assessing the claim that support for democratization around the world is facing a serious challenge. Bringing together leading international scholars of democratization, including Thomas Carothers, Michael McFaul, Laurence Whitehead, Bassma Kodmani, Nancy Bermeo, Marina Ottaway, Shaun Breslin and,Renske Doorenspleet, this book examines the issues relating to developments within non-democratic states and issues related to the democratic world and its efforts to support the spread of democracy. Featuring in-depth studies on the limits of US democracy promotion, the Middle East, Russia, China and new democracies, the book sheds light on such questions as: Is the wave of democratization now in retreat or should we be careful not to exaggerate the importance of recent setbacks? Do serious, sustainable alternatives to democracy now exist? Is international democracy promotion finished? New Challenges to Democratization brings together a variety of academics and writers from major think-tanks in the United States and Europe, and makes the book ideally suited to a wide international readership. This book will be of particular interest to students and scholars of democratization, comparative politics and international politics."--Back cover.

Political systems --- Democratization. --- Democracy. --- #SBIB:324H71 --- Self-government --- Political science --- Equality --- Representative government and representation --- Republics --- Democratic consolidation --- Democratic transition --- New democracies --- Politieke verandering: modernisatie, democratisering, regional development --- Democracy --- Democratization

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Why have so many attempts at democracy in the past half-century failed? Confronting this much discussed question, Jay Ulfelder offers a novel explanation for the coups and rebellions that have toppled fledgling democratic regimes and that continue to threaten many new democracies today. Ulfelder draws on an original dataset of 110 democratic failures spanning 1955–2007 and also presents analytic narratives for six cases (Cyprus, Fiji, Spain, Thailand, Ukraine, and Venezuela) to illustrate why some governments survive while others collapse. Focusing on political parties and the military as key players in the "democracy game," he sheds light on the pathways by which new democracies slide all too often from founding elections to polarization and breakdown.

Democracy. --- Democratization. --- Democracy --- Democratization --- Game theory. --- Games, Theory of --- Theory of games --- Mathematical models --- Mathematics --- Democratic consolidation --- Democratic transition --- Political science --- New democracies --- Self-government --- Equality --- Representative government and representation --- Republics --- Mathematical models.

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

This paper argues that legislative malapportionment, denoting a discrepancy between the share of legislative seats and the share of population held by electoral districts, serves as a tool for pre-democratic elites to preserve their political power and economic interests after a transition to democracy. The authors claim that legislative malapportionment enhances the pre-democratic elite's political influence by over-representing areas that are more likely to vote for parties aligned with the elite. This biased political representation survives in equilibrium as long as it helps democratic consolidation. Using data from Latin America, the authors document empirically that malapportionment increases the probability of transitioning to a democracy. Moreover, the data show that over-represented electoral districts are more likely to vote for parties close to pre-democracy ruling groups. The analysis also finds that overrepresented areas have lower levels of political competition and receive more transfers per capita from the central government, both of which favor the persistence of power of pre-democracy elites.

Democracies --- Democratic regimes --- Economic power --- Elections --- Electoral systems --- Emerging Markets --- Governance --- Labor Policies --- Legislation --- Macroeconomics and Economic Growth --- Parliamentary Government --- Political Economy --- Political groups --- Political influence --- Political representation --- Political Systems and Analysis --- Private Sector Development --- Social Protections and Labor --- Voting