From the Margins to the Mainstream. New Role of Political Party In the Process of Representation

Author presents a problem driven qualitative oriented empirical research of the Polish case, where various types of linkage between the political party arena and social organizations has been recently established. Poland here serves as an interesting example of political system where the mainstream politics (electoral, parliamentary and executive) is closed for the new entrants and resistant to the new topics of interest. At the same time, the considerable number of civil society organizations as well as political parties keeps operating on the margins of parliamentary politics. In-depth Interviews with those organizations and margin parties leaders (conducted in 2011/2012) revealed three main ?emergency entrants? that has been used to influence mainstream politics: export of experts, mediatisation of the topic and institutionalization of interests. Elaborating on the latter, where political party form has been used by different types of social activist author offers unique perspective on political party change and new role this institution plays the new democracies.