Long-term Changes in Danish Party Politics: The Rise and Importance of Issue Competition

In Denmark and Norway, major research programmes known as the ‘power and democracy studies’ have evaluated the functioning of the political systems and democracy in general, highlighting numerous changes in both Danish and Norwegian politics over recent decades. However, despite the broad range of s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scandinavian political studies 2006-09, Vol.29 (3), p.219-235
Main Author: Green-Pedersen, Christoffer
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Competition
Decision Making
Democracy
Denmark
Norway
Party politics
Party systems
Political Parties
Political power
Political systems
Politics
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Summary:In Denmark and Norway, major research programmes known as the ‘power and democracy studies’ have evaluated the functioning of the political systems and democracy in general, highlighting numerous changes in both Danish and Norwegian politics over recent decades. However, despite the broad range of studies that characterize both programmes, it is striking how little attention has been paid to changes in party politics and party competition. This article, which focuses on Danish politics, argues that attention to the development of party competition would have been warranted for two reasons. First, party competition has undergone a transformation from class to issue competition. Political parties increasingly focus their efforts on influencing the content of the political agenda rather than positioning themselves with regard to a limited number of issues deriving from their class bases. Second, this transformation arguably explains some of the findings of the power and democracy studies, especially concerning political decision making.
ISSN:0080-6757
1467-9477
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9477.2006.00150.x