Issue 4, 2007   

Party Democracy in Change. Power without substance?

Werner Kremp: Alienating friends. SPD and USA: An interesting and tense relation, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 5-15.

Werner Kremp reflects in his essay some historically and topically important aspects of the relation between Social-Democrats and the USA, by analyzing and interpreting comments on American issues, which represent the beginning and the end of one and a half centuries of socialistic Beschäftigung with the USA. These comments by Karl Marx (1864) and Björn Engholm (1992) are the background against which he analyzes the relationship. He claims that without reflecting emergence of the United States as a global power the development of social-democratic thought cannot be understood. Kremp resumes that European societies amaricanize more and more and for that reason it does not not only make sense to deal with the USA but it is necessary for Social Democrats.

Ulrich Eith/Gerd Mielke: On glasses and images. Footnotes referring to psephology and party analysis FJNSB 4/2007, pp 16-24.

The authors analyze in how far there are interdependencies between parties, their elites and the electorate and how they interact. They are influenced by consultants, public affairs agencies and media. Furthermore they are involved into a system of normative claims. Dealing with psephology and party analysis they state that the term „sciencification of politics“ refers to a complex process of interaction between different protagonists and levels. Voters and parties play a pivotal role in all models of plural democracy, since they guarantee legitimation, participation and control within the system of governance. For that reason the authors conclude that the understanding of politics mediated by theories of social sciences and economics transformed in public statements affects the understanding of democracy. The discrepancy between political elites proclaiming to reform budgets, health and pension schemes and the electorate’s expectations hold the possibility of an alienation between citizens and parties.

Gerd Mielke: Changing Party-systems? Remarks on the Große Koalition, FJNSB 4/2007, pp. 25-36.

Mielke sees the reason for the present constellation of party competition and party alliances in the fact that party elites alienate from their social and cultural basis. In the election campaigns 2005 Social-Democrats as well as Christian-Democrats focussed on turning away from the welfare state, which is regarded as an important aspect legitimating political order in Germany. Perspectives for the elections 2009 offer no other opportunity than the „Große Koalition“, since other coalitions are possible but probably not stable. At the same time there is a dealignment. To counter this development there are tendencies of „Re-Socialdemcratisazion“ within CDU and SPD. Shall there be no other possible coalitions which are also stable, this would affect democracy in a bad was.

Steffen Schoon: Party System in Eastern Germany – regionalized, fragmented and not working properly, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 37-46.

Parties in Eastern Germany show some specific characters and problem, which differ from theit counterparts in the west and are not recognized in public. Most important are regionalizetion and fragmentation. More and more the several states influence the framework in which political action takes place and affect in this was how strongly parties can take hold in society. Most important for the different constellation of competition and volatility is the relation between SPD and DIE LINKE since they compete for the hegemony on “left” topics as Social Justice. Though there are differences there are also similarities. Parties face a structural problem as there are only few party members and weak intermediary structures. Furthermore the natural partners as trade unions and churches are also not deep-seated in society. For that reason political education ist he main task.

Konrad Schacht: Offside. Lessons from Frankfurt’s SPD, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 47-52.

The author claims that the federal SPD could learn from the political development in Frankfurt, how an earlier powerful party can lose its influence. An important factor is the the development of members and the organization itself. In Frankfurt there had to be found early an answer to the question: How can an old worker’s party attract the new members of the service- society and broach at the same time the social issues as unemployment, poverty and fear of descent. The author analyzes the problematic turning away from a tradition of welfarism in a time when the social question rose again. He concludes that competitors from the left could weaken the SPD. As a consequence the party would become uninteresting referring to power politics.

Thomas Hauf: Modernizing traditionalists. Partyreforms in the SPD since the 1990ies, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 53-62.

As a characteristic of social-democratic processes of change Hauf sees the motto of necessary modernizetion on ground of traditions. A historical analysis shows that partyreforms are in the SPD a permanent task and institutionalized. After sketching the historical reforms since the parties foundation the author focuses on the reforms in the 1990ies, especially the proposals of the project groups ‚SPD 2000’ and ‚Mitgliederpartei’ (member’s party), which represent the relevant reforms in the last 20 years. All tried to answer the question how the functionality of the party can be improves facing societal change. The author concludes that parties react to societal change but merely shape society.

Out of sorts? Parties in Civil Society, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 63-71.

The thesis of this essay ist that the relation between parties and civic engagement is no more a politically vibrant project of reform but is mainly understood as an economic optimization of political and societal life. Refering to the relation between parties and civic engagement Mileke shows that parties lose their ability and willingness to take impulses from society. From his point of view there are three main reasons fort he loss of members: Erosion of classic milieua; the gap between expactations of democratic participation and inflexible party organizations and a demobilization due to the media. Mielke states that parties are for young people not only an alien organization but have also a bad image, which affects the attration to engage in parties. From this analysis he presents some instuments, which could enable parties to Stopp these trends or even reverse them.

Eva Christensen: Attitudes towards slimmingt the welfare state. Expactation of citizens and options of politicians, FJNSB 4/2007, pp 72-86.

The author analyzes the attitude toward the welfare state. She shows that there are more and more people agreeing with reducing welfare benefits, but they are still a minority in the west as well as in the east. Polticians aiming at reduction of welfare benefits have not only to keep in mind this adversary group but have to deal with differences in east and west. Changing attitudes are not plausible, as these are rootes in normative orientations. Though it seems to be plausible that public rhetorics and little reforms makes more and more people open to cutting welfare benefits, the analysis shows parties aiming at the reduction of the welfare state have to walk on a fine line when they want to win elections.