Party Politics in the Western Balkans

This book examines the development of party politics in the region of Western Balkans, describing party politics and analyzing inter-ethnic or inter-party cooperation and competition.

Beginning with a thematic overview of the electoral systems and their link to the party systems, the authors consider the legacy of socialist/communist parties; compare the nationalist parties in the region; and explore opportunities for the national minorities. The book then provides detailed country case studies on Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania that:

• Provide an overview of the development of the respective political system since 1990, presenting key changes over time
• Depict important political issues in each of these countries and explains parties’ particular policies in relation to these issues
• Discuss the level of democracy as well as ethnic minorities in the given states
• Explore the extent to which nationalism has dominated party organization, the stability of the parties, important changes in the party policies, and their electoral performance and personalisation of the parties

Bringing together a range of specialist experts on the Balkans, this book will be of interest to students and scholars of party politics, comparative European politics, post-communist politics, nationalism, Southern European and Western Balkan politics.

Vera Stojarova works as an Academic Researcher at the Institute for Comparative Political Research in Brno. The field of her professional interest is research on political and party systems in the Balkan countries.

Peter Emerson works as the director of the de Borda Institute, an international NGO which specialises in promoting preference voting, especially in plebiscites on sovereignty. His work abroad has centred on conflict zones in the Balkans, the Caucasus, and East Africa.