Does intra-party democracy affect levels of trust in parties? the cases of Belgium and Israel

Yael Shomer, Gert Jan Put, Einat Gedalya-Lavy

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Previous research has shown a steady decline of citizen's political trus and growing skepticism towards key institutions of representative democr acy. Political parties, which perform the crucial role of linking citizens to the political system, are in the eye of the storm: citizens are generally more distrusting towards parties than other social and political institutions. The relevant literature mentions that parties often implement intra-party democratization to remedy party distrust. This article examines whether democratic candidate selection processes actually affect party trust among voters. The analysis is based on the cases of Belgium and Israel, where politicians made a strong case for intra-party democracy in recent history. The results indicate that, while inclusive selectorates indeed increase trust levels, decentralization decreases trust towards parties in both countries.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)167-183
Number of pages17
JournalActa Politica
Volume53
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Apr 2018

Keywords

  • Belgium
  • Candidate selection
  • Israel
  • Trust in parties

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Political Science and International Relations

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Does intra-party democracy affect levels of trust in parties? the cases of Belgium and Israel'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this