The role of national delegations in the politics of the European Parliament

The European Parliament (EP) constitutes a prime site of contemporary party politics in Europe. Its seven political groups represent political interests and ideologies beyond specific national interests. Within the groups, national delegations exert considerable power. The research objective of this...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:West European politics 2024-09, Vol.47 (6), p.1251-1275
Main Authors: Elomäki, Anna, Kantola, Johanna, Ahrens, Petra, Berthet, Valentine, Gaweda, Barbara, Miller, Cherry
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
European Parliament
informal institutions
Interest groups
Leadership
Legislatures
national delegations
Policy making
political parties
Politics
power
Quantitative analysis
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Summary:The European Parliament (EP) constitutes a prime site of contemporary party politics in Europe. Its seven political groups represent political interests and ideologies beyond specific national interests. Within the groups, national delegations exert considerable power. The research objective of this article is to generate new knowledge about the role of national delegations within political groups. The research material consists of 140 elite interviews with MEPs and staff. The data allow the article to analyse the construction of the role and the importance of national delegations and to focus not just on formal institutions, but also on informal ones which are often outside the reach of quantitative methods and data. The findings suggest that political groups can be divided into different categories. The role and influence of national delegations are strongly governed by informal institutions, in particular when it comes to distribution of leadership positions and policy making.
ISSN:0140-2382
1743-9655
DOI:10.1080/01402382.2023.2275387