Leadership Elections: What is at Stake for Parties? A Comparison of the British Labour Party and the Parti Socialiste: Table 1

Assessing the Performance of UK Opposition Leaders: Jeremy Corbyn’s ‘Straight Talking, Honest Politics’

“…This conflicts with the Left's traditional view of party democracy, however, which has emphasised the importance of holding the leader in check by dispersing authority and power across a plurality of institutions, namely the PLP, the NEC, the trade unions, and the party conference; it was conference in particular that was believed to be the party's 'sovereign body' (Faucher, 2015). The Left felt uncomfortable with 'hero-worshipping' leaders, insisting leadership was a collective endeavour; since MacDonald, it feared Labour's leaders would betray socialism, mesmerised by the 'aristocratic embrace' of the political establishment (Cronin, 2004;Faucher, 2015). In the 1970s, it was believed that Labour governments had refused to implement party policy, fuelling demands for democratisation reasserting the authority of conference (Cronin, 2004, p. 217).…”

“…The classical thesis of 'the cartel party' is that power within social democratic parties across Europe is shifting from the grassroots to the 'party in office' (Katz & Mair, 2009); yet the Corbyn phenomenon appears to refute Katz and Mair's thesis. Centre-left parties are experimenting with new methods of democratisation intended to revitalise their social base and political appeal (Faucher, 2015). Nonetheless, it is unclear whether democratisation makes opposition parties more electable; it may produce less predictable outcomes in leadership elections, as the Corbyn ascendency underlines.…”

The influence of legislators’ endorsements in party leadership elections

“…These changes in formal influence are noteworthy, and have important symbolic effects (Faucher 2014). The expansion of the selectorate to include party members has been described as a process of "democratisation" (Kenig 2009b).…”

The Influence of Legislators' Endorsements in Party Leadership Elections

“…These changes in formal influence are noteworthy, and have important symbolic effects (Faucher 2014). The expansion of the selectorate to include party members has been described as a process of "democratisation" (Kenig 2009b).…”