The President-Party Linkage and Democratic Backsliding in Presidential and Semi-Presidential Regimes

Abstract

In recent years, comparative party politics has concentrated on two distinct types of political parties: authoritarian successor parties (ASPs) and populist radical right parties (PRRPs). ASPs are parties that emerge from authoritarian regimes but operate after a transition to democracy. PRRPs refer to parties that emphasize an exclusionist, ethno-nationalist concept of citizenship, as well as populist and anti-establishment rhetoric. ASPs and PRRPs exhibit considerable variation in the electoral performance, which may influence democratic politics. However, there is mixed evidence regarding the extent to which ASPs and PRRPs affect democratic outcomes. Currently, there is a lack of attention given to the president’s influence on the electoral performance of ASPs and PRRPs, as well as the party system, which may further impact the functioning of a democracy in presidential and semi-presidential regimes. The connection between a president and a political party can take several forms. First, the president may serve as the leader of a PRRP or an ASP, and the policies he develops or the authority he exercises to oppose related bills proposed by his rival party can directly affect how a democracy operates. Second, the opposition may develop appropriate strategies to contest executive aggrandizement and subsequent democratic erosion by populist presidents. Third, the president, as the leader of an anti-authoritarian successor party, may compete with ASPs, which could potentially result in the development of a unique party system that could further impact democratic outcomes. Finally, presidents may exercise formal or informal power to push for values or policy directions that are in line with what their citizens want. As a consequence of this rationale, active presidents may speak on behalf of the people, thus reducing the proliferation of populist parties that employ anti-elitist rhetoric and speak on behalf of the ‘ordinary people’. This panel integrates research concerns associated with presidential politics, party politics, and democratic consolidation and backsliding to offer innovative perspectives on the president’s role in the development of parties and party systems, as well as the subsequent democratic outcomes.

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