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Wed 30 March
    8.30 - 10.30
    11.00 - 13.00
    14.00 - 16.00
    16.30 - 18.30

Thu 31 March
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    11.00 - 13.00
    14.00 - 16.00
    16.30 - 18.30

Fri 1 April
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    11.00 - 13.00
    14.00 - 16.00
    16.30 - 18.30

Sat 2 April
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    11.00 - 13.00
    14.00 - 16.00
    16.30 - 18.30

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Wednesday 30 March 2016 8.30 - 10.30
C-1 ELI16 Local Elites in National Politics
Seminario C, Nivel 0
Networks: Elites and Forerunners , Politics, Citizenship, and Nations Chair: Irina Morozova
Organizers: - Discussant: Irina Morozova
Martin Åberg : Independent Local Lists: Competition between Local Elites, or an Expression of Centre-periphery Conflicts? A Comparative Case Study
Independent local lists, i.e. political parties that are ‘solely locally organised’, and compete for voters in ‘one single local jurisdiction’, have increased their voter support in Western Europe in the last fifteen to twenty years. The opposite holds for Central and Eastern Europe, viz. a general decrease in voter support. ... (Show more)
Independent local lists, i.e. political parties that are ‘solely locally organised’, and compete for voters in ‘one single local jurisdiction’, have increased their voter support in Western Europe in the last fifteen to twenty years. The opposite holds for Central and Eastern Europe, viz. a general decrease in voter support. One explanation of the former pattern refers to the ‘crisis of the [established] party system’, whereas the later pattern arguably reflects the ‘consolidation of the party system and the gradual strengthening of political parties as the main players in post-communist democracy’ (Reiser and Holtmann 2008: 287-288). Regional and country specific variations therefore make a general assessment of the role of local lists difficult. Even if we limit our attention to Western Europe and accept the notion of a party system in crisis – whether or not caused by the cartelization of traditional political parties, and the gradual withdrawal of their leadership from everyday life of ‘ordinary people’ – several, alternative interpretations of independent local lists are allowed for.
For example, independent local lists may simply be an expression of discontent with the ‘big players’ in politics (Sannerstedt 2010: 98-99), a form of discontent which might be labelled populism (Mudde 2004, 2007). But, if so, the pattern is paradoxical: Local lists for instance in the Nordic countries retain organizational features typical to their ‘elitist’ competitors among traditional political parties (Ahlberger & Åberg 2014, Aars & Ringkjøb 2008: 231). Furthermore, local lists tend to cooperate with traditional parties, despite their allegedly non-establishment and non-partisan profile.
A second interpretation draws less on the presumed populist traits of independent local lists. Rather, support for them is considered as an expression of forms of civic engagement that the traditional parties have neglected, or simply failed to channel (Wollmann 2006, Meligrana 2014, Meyer & Miller 2015). Surges in non-traditional voting thus indicate a rupture in the party-system (Bäck 2010: 128): politics on the municipal level is becoming increasingly detached from the organizational framework of established political elites. The latter lose their traditional ‘integrative function’.
Both scenarios are consistent with the idea that the emergence of independent local lists indicates a new centre-periphery dimension in European politics, similarly to the green-alternative-libertarian and traditional-authoritative-nationalist dimension. Presumably these parties express not only a conflict between grass roots and old, local elites, but also a conflict between local communities and the ‘centre’ of the nation-state.
Local level studies of party systems transformation that might help us develop theoretical tools and formulate hypotheses to answer these questions are, however, lacking. Importantly, the circumstance that local lists seem to appear primarily in certain, historically speaking specific regions, has been neglected. A bottom-top approach, involving in-depth analysis of a limited number of cases, provides a way forward. The paper presents a comparative case study of two Swedish municipalities based on historical sources, statistical data, focus group interviews, and analysis of Internet-based political communication. (Show less)

Vincenzo Barra : Civil Society and Political System in the Liberal States: the Patronage’s Networks of Abilio Calderon and Michele Capozzi in the Elections of 1901 in Spain and 1876 in Italy
The theme of this proposal is focused on the political power in rural societies of Western Europe in the transition from the Nineteenth to the Twentieth century, in a comparative international perspective, studying in particular the cases of the Spanish and Italian state. Our aim will be to make a ... (Show more)
The theme of this proposal is focused on the political power in rural societies of Western Europe in the transition from the Nineteenth to the Twentieth century, in a comparative international perspective, studying in particular the cases of the Spanish and Italian state. Our aim will be to make a comparison of complex patronage networks institutionalized in liberal political culture of the late nineteenth century through political mediation.

In recent years has been growing the interest about comparative studies on the socio-political area, but in relation to political patronage networks there aren’t studies that confront the networks of "political friends" between regions in different states, in order to discern similarities and differences between them, regarding the penetration of liberal culture under the “caciquismo” (in Spain) and the "trasformismo" (in Italy), and researches about how these networks were responding from the provincial and local level to the central governments in Madrid and Rome.

The research aims to highlight, from a comparative perspective, similarities and differences between the Spanish “caciquismo” and patronage system in the Bourbon Restoration and the Italian case since the fall of the “Destra Storica”.

Actually will be compared two figures of the political life in Spain and Italy: Abilio Calderon (1867-1939), member of Parliament for Palencia from 1898 to 1923, minister and member of the Conservative Party; and Michele Capozzi (1836-1917), one of the leaders of the political scene in Irpina (Avellino), from 1867-1904 and president of the provincial council for more than two decades. The basic sources that we will use for this comparison are their epistolary in both States.

Beyond the biographical postulates, our aim will be study their administrative and political relations, their client’s networks, and ultimately their respective connections between political centre and periphery, focusing on the elections of 1904 in Italy and 1905 in Spain. This in order to make a comparative analysis of how the central liberal state in both countries penetrated the outlying areas, at the provincial and local levels, and how they responded to the politic central state. (Show less)

Ida Bull : Elites and Democratization
The paper will explore discussions in Norwegian cities on political representation in the period before a constitution with quite extensive franchise was instituted in 1814. Until 1814 Norway was a part of the Danish-Norwegian absolute kingdom. Despite the absolutism of the state, cities had arrangements for (some) burghers taking ... (Show more)
The paper will explore discussions in Norwegian cities on political representation in the period before a constitution with quite extensive franchise was instituted in 1814. Until 1814 Norway was a part of the Danish-Norwegian absolute kingdom. Despite the absolutism of the state, cities had arrangements for (some) burghers taking part in governing the city or giving advice to the local state bureaucracy. The arrangements had developed from the medieval burghers' gatherings to varying methods for burghers having an impact on how the city was governed. Discussions concerned which parts of the inhabitants should be participants in the system: how should deputies be elected, who should be eligible, and who should be allowed to vote. It also was about what kind of power or influence such representatives should have in a system where the bureaucrats represented the autocratic king. The discussions and arrangements were closely connected to a process of social differentiation in Norwegian cities from the late seventeenth to the early nineteenth century, in a period when commercialisation was growing and Norwegian cities were increasingly involved in international trade. The paper will argue that these discussions, conflicts between groups and the resulting constitution also was closely connected to the development of education, first in Norwegian cities, subsequently nationally. (Show less)



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