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Abstract:The article addresses the differential recruitment advantages of individual candidates in regional assembly elections. The authors argue that in a multi-level polity different types of incumbency exist that are refl ected in the recruitment process, favour offi ceholders over newcomers, and at the same time differentiate the accessibility of regional offi ces for offi ceholders at various system levels. Moreover, it is argued that the effect of multi-level incumbency can be well observed even in proportional electoral systems. Empirically, the impact of incumbency on a candidate's chances to succeed in the recruitment process and to obtain preferential votes is analysed using regional assembly elections in the Czech Republic as an example. The authors demonstrate that regional incumbents enjoy by a huge margin advantage during the candidate nomination phase and they are the most favoured group at the ballot followed by national-level politicians and big city mayors.

The article focuses on the academic discourse of social cohesion, from general theories of social integration through to the defi nitions, measurement methods, and basic analytical concepts. The authors identify two degrees of universality with respect to the use of the concept of social cohesion: 1) the creation and preservation of social order in general, and 2) the study of particular mechanisms of social cohesion (civic participation, the effectiveness of cooperation, etc.). The fi rst part differentiates between different general social theories according to how they approach the question of integration (norms/ procedures and structures/relations), and the second part reviews the most important empirical approaches to the study of cohesion at the micro-and society-wide levels and the indicators used in these approaches. The authors distinguish between approaches 'integration from the bottom up' (e.g. factors of in-group cohesion) and the enlarged multidimensional, normative/relational 'good society approach' to macro-social cohesion. In conclusion, the authors propose a conceptual framework for studying the social cohesion of Czech society broadly based on the 'good society' approach, which they further elaborate in terms of reciprocity and universally applicable rules. This multidimensional conceptual framework encompasses the vertical dimension of social inequalities and civic rights and the horizontal dimension of collective social capital, especially its bridging form.

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