As you know, each social group (class, layer) has its own special interests, which it would like to bring to the attention of the whole society and, most importantly, to the attention of the authorities. The activities of political parties are associated with the expression of these group interests and their protection at the state level. Prototypes of parties arose in medieval Italy (XII - XV centuries), but modern party forms began to be adopted only at the turn of the 18th - 19th centuries. and especially in the 2nd half of the latter (in England, France, the USA and other countries, in Russia - at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries).
By its most general definition, a political party is a voluntary, non-governmental organization of people united by a common ideology and an active desire to win and exercise political power in society. Parties perform numerous and varied functions. Although they are all closely intertwined, they can be grouped into the following five main areas.
Functions of political parties:
- social;
— ideological;
- political;
— managerial;
- electoral.
Social function. It lies in the fact that the party generally expresses and protects the interests of a particular social group and brings its demands to the level of state power, sometimes participating in the development of measures for their implementation. Moreover, in recent decades, trying to expand its social base (i.e. number of their supporters), many parties try to represent in society the demands of not one, but several close social groups.
The ideological function of the party is manifested 1) in the development of party ideology (theoretical concepts, party program, socio-economic and political strategies, assessments of events, slogans, etc.), and also 2) in the dissemination, propaganda of this ideology, in political information and educational work. At the same time, it is fundamentally important for any party to be capable of ideological renewal. The fact is that the so-called “firm convictions” that the orthodox members of the CPSU loved to be proud of can also harm the party. The rapid development and rationalization of the life of modern society require constant and flexible political modernization, that is, modernizing political activity, bringing it into line with new conditions and in a state of readiness to respond to the challenges of the time. Otherwise, the party may become detached from life, become stagnant, “yesterday’s” party of passing generations and lose its former supporters.
The political function consists primarily of mastering state power. To accomplish this main task, parties select and “grow” their political leaders, train specialists on various problems of public life, nominate candidates for elective and non-elected positions, and actively work in parliaments and other government bodies.
The managerial function is characteristic of parties in power (especially in communist societies). Such parties turn into a kind of state parties, because they organize and direct the actions of the state, initiate social and political changes in society, and manage various spheres of public life.
Finally, the electoral function of parties is manifested in the fact that they actively participate in elections, organize election campaigns, conduct information and propaganda work with their potential electorate, come up with election programs, control the course of elections, and so on.
Modern political scientists identify many intertwined types of parties based on a variety of characteristics. The main ones are presented in the figure. Thus, according to the nature of the functioning of parties, they are widely divided into cadre and mass parties. Cadre parties are distinguished by their small numbers, free membership, and lack of a clear structure and membership fees. They operate primarily during election campaigns and in parliaments, relying on professional politicians and financial support from businesses and individual citizens.
Mass parties, on the contrary, are numerous, clearly organized, have membership fees and operate constantly, performing primarily social, ideological and political functions. An example of the former is the Democratic and Republican parties in the USA, the latter - the Social Democratic parties in Sweden, Germany and some other countries.
Based on the nature of political behavior in society, two main types of parties can also be distinguished. Democratic parties are characterized by a respectful attitude towards political diversity and pluralism in society, tolerance (or tolerance) towards other parties and inter-party competition, and a willingness to compromise and cooperate with other social forces.
In contrast, totalitarian parties strive for a monopoly position and dominance, the absolute subordination of other political institutions (parties, movements, the state), the eradication of dissent and the establishment of a single ideology in society. To achieve their goals, they try to unite all the dissatisfied in society and direct all types of social protests in one direction.
Based on their place in the political system, or depending on their participation in the exercise of power, parties are divided into ruling (ruling) and opposition. The latter, in turn, can be divided into legal (permitted and registered by the state and operating within the framework of the law), semi-legal (not registered, but not prohibited) and illegal, which are prohibited by the state and often operate in conditions of secrecy and underground.
Opposition parties are often characterized by peculiar behavior, not having power and not being responsible for anything, they categorically dissociate themselves from the “disastrous course” of the ruling circles, mercilessly criticizing it. This is how the votes of future voters are earned. However, having come to power, former oppositionists sometimes make the same “disastrous mistakes.”
The fourth feature in our classification scheme for political parties is their views on the nature of the development of society. Based on it, four main types of parties can be roughly distinguished. Evolutionary parties start from the fact that the socio-political structures of society must be formed and developed over many centuries through the gradual and organic adaptation of old, traditional forms to emerging new living conditions. Reformist parties are ready to push and accelerate the process of evolutionary development of society by carrying out the necessary reforms in it. Unlike the latter, revolutionary parties are aimed at accelerating social progress not only through reforms, but also through revolutions, which allow them to instantly get rid of everything old and obsolete in order to build a new world in their place.
Another political movement is represented by the so-called radical parties. They are distinguished by at least three main features: 1) they set themselves the task of achieving not partial, but fundamental changes in one or another area of social life; 2) in achieving their goals, they are committed to radicalism, to the use of extreme, “surgical”, violent measures (terrorism, murder, repression, explosions, arson, illegal seizures of people, any objects, etc.). At the same time, 3) they often create tension in society, a climate of confrontation, hostility and intransigence (“those who are not with us are against us”). This is exactly how, for example, various extremist terrorist groups operate in the north-west of India, as well as in the already mentioned Algeria and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
In most countries of the world, there is not one (as in the recent past in the Soviet Union), but several or even many political parties. Their totality in each given country forms the party system. Such a system (especially if it consists of more than one party and, therefore, there is a choice) is an important element of the life of society: it gives vent to the various demands of citizens, maintains a balance between social groups and the political forces representing them, and allows many people to actually participate in politics.
The most common typology of party systems is based on a quantitative criterion - the number of parties actually fighting for power or influencing it. In the course of historical development, four main types of party systems have emerged.
Party systems:
- one-party;
- multi-party;
- two-half party;
- multi-party
The first of these, the one-party system, can only be spoken of as a system conditionally, since there is only one party that has monopolized all political power in the country and deprived voters of any choice. A one-party, non-competitive and stagnant regime is characteristic of totalitarian and authoritarian states. The party and the state there are essentially one whole (as, for example, in today's Cuba with its only Communist Party or in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, where the Workers' Party of Korea is also virtually a monopolist).
In a two-party system, power is held by one of the two parties. A classic example is the British system with the Conservative and Labor parties, which, with varying degrees of rotation, have an absolute majority in parliament and form the government. At the same time, it is possible that there are other parties that do not have a real chance of coming to power.
The two-and-a-half party system is essentially a variation of the two-party model, but deserves its own explanation. It occurs when, next to the two main parties, a third appears - relatively weak, but capable of helping the first or second to gain power. In this case, one of the main parties and the third form a coalition, which provides both (in total) with a greater number of votes in elections or directly in parliament.
A good illustration here can be the Federal Republic of Germany 1969-1982. - a period of coalition rule between two parties. Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and Free Democratic Party (FDP). Take, for example, the 1976 elections. The country's two main parties - the SPD and the CDU/CSU bloc (Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union) - then received 42.6% and 48.6% of the votes, respectively. And if it were not for the coalition with the “small” party - the FDP (7.9% of the votes), the SPD would not have gained power. It is not without reason that in October 1982, when the Free Democrats left this coalition, a government crisis erupted in the country, and power after early parliamentary elections passed to the CDU/CSU (though again with coalition help from the FDP).
The same principle of creating party coalitions to come to power also applies to multi-party systems, that is, when there are three or more parties in the country, each of which collects a significant number of votes in elections. Thus, to summarize, it turns out that coalition governments are a sign of a system with more than two parties, and single-party governments are a sign of one- or two-party systems.
The most common systems in the democratic world are two- and multi-party systems. The former are usually characteristic of established, ideologically more homogeneous and consolidated societies with rich experience of democracy (Great Britain, USA). The second - for societies with a greater degree of fragmentation, i.e. disunity, separation of population groups along national, socio-economic, religious or ideological grounds (Belgium, Israel, Switzerland, Sweden, etc.).
Each of these systems, of course, has its own pros and cons. Thus, the presence of many parties creates, on the one hand, invigorating competition of political forces, stimulating the search for ways to more effectively manage society. But, on the other hand, it also contributes to the “fragmentation” and fragmentation of people’s interests, making it difficult to coordinate and harmonize their positions. This can exacerbate contradictions in society and lead to political instability.
In turn, the two-party scheme, while sometimes ensuring greater stability of political life, gives rise to its own shortcomings. Thus, the ideologies of only two parties may turn out to be too extreme and monochromatic - without the necessary nuances that come from the many colors of life. This deprives the political spectrum of society of balancing people's interests, compromise, party positions, impoverishing the choice for voters. As a result, either a) so-called protest voting can be stimulated (not for one of the candidates of only two parties, but against the other), or b) on the principle of choosing the lesser of two evils, or c) complete disregard for elections.
Features of a multi-party system in modern Russia
Today's Russia can also be classified as a country with a multi-party system (if not even a super-multi-party system), since the number of registered political parties and movements has long been in the hundreds. However, the vast majority of them exist only on paper. Only a few dozen party organizations and groups have actually working structures, of which four are represented in the State Duma (1998). This situation with the presence of a huge number of pseudo-parties is most clearly and succinctly characterized by the paraphrased title of the famous Shakespearean play “many parties from nothing.” Why is this so?
First of all, because the emergence of political parties and movements in our fatherland is proceeding in an unnatural way. Let us remember that normally parties are born from below: social groups, having realized their common interests through their vanguard, are “looking” for a political force (union, party, movement and leader) that could declare them to society and the authorities.
In Russia, for the most part, it’s the other way around. Its political circles are crowded with ambitious leadership contenders. Each of them strives to become, albeit small, but independent and sole leader, so it is difficult for them to come to an agreement with each other to join forces. As a result, dozens of leaders appear, eager to form at least a mini-party around themselves. Of course, today Russian society is highly fragmented (left and right, nationalists and cosmopolitans, Slavophiles and Westerners, statists and opponents of statism, beer lovers and milk lovers, etc.), but not to the same extent that for each of the dozens of vain leaders found their own separate “social fragment”.
The personalized miniature batches created in this way are sometimes called, not without reason, by the Latin term “clientela”. In fact, such a clientele is a group of political activists united around one or another prominent and possibly influential politician (patron). These activists work for the success of their patron and are connected with him by a relationship of personal dependence, therefore, with the latter’s departure from the political scene, the entire structure of the “party” collapses (although a favorable option cannot be ruled out: the gradual expansion, strengthening and development of the clientele into a real party).
Thus, we can conclude that in today's Russia there is only a process of establishing a genuine multi-party system. It could not have been otherwise, since Russian society itself (whose interests the parties are supposed to express) is still far from having acquired a civilized and stable structure. Accordingly, the parties (most of them are more accurately called proto-parties): in many ways have not decided on their programmatic and ideological basis; they are still looking for their circle of possible supporters; bogged down in momentary squabbles among themselves, in opportunistic circumstances; in unconstructive (unfruitful) criticism of the government; in dubious games and speculations on the natural feelings and images of gullible “ordinary people” (on their nostalgia for the irrevocable USSR and longing for a lost youth, on national and patriotic feelings, on distorted ideas about the “imperialist”, “exploitative” West, etc. .).
Political parties play an important role in the social life of democrats tic society. Name any three functions of a political party in the political system of society and illustrate each of them with a specific example
1. expression of powerfully significant interests of individual groups (the parliamentary faction of a political party represents the interests of the middle class, seeking the adoption of legislation regulating the activities of medium and small businesses and tax benefits)
2. development of political programs (the political party presented its program for the development of civil society)
3. political socialization of citizens and their involvement in political life (the political party held a series of rallies in support of democratic reforms...)
Formulate four judgments that reveal the various functions of poly political parties in modern society
We have already spoken about the need for parties in a representative manner, about the benefits and disadvantages arising from their struggle. Political freedom calls upon social forces to participate in public affairs. Because of this, political movement here occurs no other way than through the interaction of those various currents and directions into which society is divided. Here lies the main source of political life in constitutional states.
Parties naturally arise out of public opinion. The necessity of discipline and organization for collective action transforms the unsettled mass of free random thoughts into more or less strong and durable forces capable of being subjects of political action.
With organized parties it is possible to calculate and direct disparate aspirations towards a common goal; The more stable the parties are, the more they have merged with the history of the people, the more their program has been defined, the more correctly political life, based on freedom, flows. On the contrary, where the party represents only a vague fermentation of infinitely varied trends, only chaos is born from political freedom. On the other hand, only with political freedom can real parties be formed, because only then does it become possible and necessary to act together in the political field, to achieve certain goals through the constant and combined efforts of many. But freedom alone is not enough for this; It is necessary that the elements necessary for parties exist in society, that political meaning be developed, that the main directions be determined, that people group around certain principles they have created, and, finally, that political mores be developed, which are created by any social activity that requires combined efforts. In a word, only mature public opinion gives birth to real political parties. And under these conditions, they do not arise suddenly, but are formed slowly, in political struggle, and must go through many trials before they receive the proper strength and strength. Therefore, one should not think that the establishment of a representative order will immediately establish parliamentary government. It is impossible until parties have accumulated operational experience and proven their ability to govern the state.
(B.N. Chicherin)
C2. Indicate, based on the text, any four conditions for the transformation of political parties into “subjects of political action”
C3. What words does the author use to characterize organized and unorganized parties in society? (Write down one author’s judgment characterizing each of these groups of parties) Give an example of the activity of one of the existing (or existing) organized parties confirming the author’s description.
C4. Some people think that parliamentary rule begins immediately after the election of party representatives to government bodies. Does the author share this opinion? Support your answer with words from the text and give an example to illustrate the validity of this judgment.
| C1. 1. Political freedom calls upon social forces to participate in public affairs 2. main source: the interactions of those various currents and directions into which society is divided | |
| C2. 1. the presence of discipline in the party ranks 3. the presence of an organization for collective action 4. the presence of political freedom 5. the development of political meaning 6. the determination of the main directions of their activities 7. the unification of people around some of the principles they created 8. the development of political mores 9. social activity, requiring joint efforts 10. formed public opinion | |
| C3. 1a. With organized parties it is possible to calculate and direct disparate aspirations towards a common goal; The more stable the parties are, the more they have merged with the history of the people, the more their program has been defined, the more correctly political life flows, based on freedom 1b. where the party represents only a vague fermentation of infinitely diverse trends, there is only chaos born from political freedom 2. example: in the USA, for more than a century and a half, large parties of Republicans and Democrats have been operating, whose programs are developing taking into account changes in the country and the world, reflecting the interests of voters . | |
| C4. 1. Does not divide 2. One should not think that the establishment of a representative order immediately establishes parliamentary government. It is impossible until parties have accumulated operational experience and proven their ability to govern the state. 3. in countries undergoing a transition to democracy, party coalitions that emerged in parliaments as a result of early elections are characterized by instability and inability to make consolidated decisions. |
C6.Using three examples, illustrate the features of conservative party rule.
The success of any political party in society depends on many factors. Among them, it is necessary to note such as the form of government (presidential or parliamentary republic) and the type of national-territorial structure of the state (unitary or federal) within which it operates, the specifics of electoral legislation, the regime of government, etc. All this has an impact on the program, pre-election activity, and daily activities of parties after the election results are summed up.
The nature of a political party is most clearly manifested through its functions:
1) The struggle for power (peaceful redistribution of power between various social forces avoids social upheavals when the balance of political forces changes). Winning an election makes it possible to form a government and begin to implement the interests represented through public policy.
2) Social representation. Each party strives to unite the widest possible strata of society and represent various social groups, since success in elections can only be ensured by a party that expresses not narrow group, but national interests.
3) Social integration. Achieving agreement with the existing system, social conformism, reconciliation of the interests of conflicting social groups.
4) Political socialization of citizens. Inclusion of a person in the world of politics through the formation of value orientations, social and political attitudes, skills in socio-political activity, the formation of public opinion in order to ensure ideological support for the party and discredit its political opponents.
5) Political recruitment, formation of the ruling elite. Training and promotion of personnel and coordination of their work in government bodies, public organizations and movements.
6) Development and implementation of a political course (it is necessary to formulate disagreements with other political forces on the main issues of social development).
In order to effectively implement these functions, political parties need material resources. Sources of financing for political parties can be grouped into the following three groups:
Own party funds. They are formed from entrance and membership fees, deductions from the salaries of leading party members, income from property and business activities. There are some restrictions here. For example, in Slovakia, political parties are prohibited from having property abroad; in Egypt and Ethiopia, they are prohibited from engaging in business activities. In addition, this aspect of the activities of political parties can lead to the fact that when engaged in entrepreneurial activities, parties merge with financial and industrial capital.
Private financing. This includes voluntary donations from individuals and legal entities. Most democratic states legally limit or completely prohibit financial support for political parties from charitable and religious organizations, state-owned enterprises, anonymous donors, and from abroad. Thus, in the USA and Israel it is prohibited to accept assistance from private legal entities (societies, organizations, firms, etc.). Sometimes both the amount of donations and the specific activities to be financed are determined by law.
Government funding. The state provides direct financial support to those parties that have passed the electoral threshold. There is a practice of distributing finances depending on the number of votes received by a party in elections (Germany, Sweden). In Denmark, Finland, and Italy, the amount of financial assistance is determined by the number of parliamentary mandates received. In addition, there is also indirect government support for political parties. Parties are provided with free airtime, space for publications and statements in the media, etc.
The leadership of a political party must publish reports on the sources of financial income, expenditure of funds, and property of the party. Almost all countries have restrictions on spending on election campaigns.
The place and role of a party in the political system is determined largely by its functions. The functions reflect the main tasks and directions of activity of a political party, its purpose in society. The most common functions of political parties include:
Representation of social interests;
Development of program guidelines, political line of the party;
Formation of public opinion, political education and political socialization of citizens;
Participation in the struggle for power and its implementation, in the formation of the political system of society;
Training and promotion of personnel.
Within the framework of these functions, it is possible to identify more specific, specific tasks. The content, forms and methods of implementing the same functions may differ among parties of different types. There are also specific functions performed by certain parties due to the peculiarities of their development and position.
An important place in the activities of the party is occupied by representation of interests classes, social groups and strata. The content of this function is the identification, formulation and justification of the interests of social forces, their integration and activation.
The interests of various social groups are aggregated and expressed in the process of developing a political program and implementing the political course of the party. The following function of the party is connected with this - development of program settings , socio-economic and political strategy. The party, as a rule, has a long-term political program based on certain ideological principles. Even if a party is not based on any strictly defined ideological system, a certain ideological commitment is manifested in its specific activities and the values it defends.
Parties strive not only to develop and update various political doctrines, but also to disseminate them widely in society. This is served by the publication of party materials, speeches by party leaders on radio and television, in the press, at rallies and meetings. The party is interested in recognition and support of its political line by public opinion. Ideological function A political party also involves the political education of its members and supporters, the education of members of society in the spirit of certain values and traditions, the introduction of citizens to political life and ultimately contributes to their political socialization.
Function of exercising power political party includes:
Participation in the preparation and conduct of elections to bodies of state power and administration;
The parliamentary activities of the party, its work in party factions of parliament and local authorities;
Participation in the process of preparation and adoption of political decisions by government bodies;
Political recruitment, etc.
The exercise of power by the ruling party is expressed not only in its initiating and advisory role in parliament, but also in the formation and subordination of executive bodies. Political parties participate in the formation of the ruling elite, selection and placement of management personnel. They are the institutions within which political leaders and statesmen are trained.
A political party acts as an intermediary between the state and civil society. Parties ensure the connection of the masses with government structures, the institutionalization of the political participation of citizens and the replacement of spontaneous forms of socio-political activity of the population with organized, controllable forms. Through political parties, citizens put forward their group demands to the state and at the same time receive requests from it for support in resolving certain political issues. Thus, parties develop both direct and backward ties between the people and the state.
This mediating role of parties is most fully manifested in a democratic society. In countries with totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, the role of ruling parties goes far beyond the scope of such mediation. Due to the absence of real competitors in the struggle for power, a political monopoly of the ruling party develops, which usurps power and political functions. The ruling party becomes over the state, establishes control over it, and through it over civil society. A party going beyond its functional purpose and attempting to replace state bodies destroys the socio-political nature of the party. Such an organization ceases to be a political party in the proper sense of the word, but retains only the external signs of such.
The success of any political party in society depends on many factors. Among them, it is necessary to note such as the form of government (presidential or parliamentary republic) and the type of national-territorial structure of the state (unitary or federal) within which it operates, the specifics of electoral legislation, the regime of government, etc. All this has an impact on the program, pre-election activity, and daily activities of parties after the election results are summed up.
The nature of a political party is most clearly manifested through its functions:
1) The struggle for power (peaceful redistribution of power between various social forces avoids social upheavals when the balance of political forces changes). Winning an election makes it possible to form a government and begin to implement the interests represented through public policy.
2) Social representation. Each party strives to unite the widest possible strata of society and represent various social groups, since success in elections can only be ensured by a party that expresses not narrow group, but national interests.
3) Social integration. Achieving agreement with the existing system, social conformism, reconciliation of the interests of conflicting social groups.
4) Political socialization of citizens. Inclusion of a person in the world of politics through the formation of value orientations, social and political attitudes, skills in socio-political activity, the formation of public opinion in order to ensure ideological support for the party and discredit its political opponents.
5) Political recruitment, formation of the ruling elite. Training and promotion of personnel and coordination of their work in government bodies, public organizations and movements.
6) Development and implementation of a political course (it is necessary to formulate disagreements with other political forces on the main issues of social development).
In order to effectively implement these functions, political parties need material resources. Sources of financing for political parties can be grouped into the following three groups:
Own party funds. They are formed from entrance and membership fees, deductions from the salaries of leading party members, income from property and business activities. There are some restrictions here. For example, in Slovakia, political parties are prohibited from having property abroad; in Egypt and Ethiopia, they are prohibited from engaging in business activities. In addition, this aspect of the activities of political parties can lead to the fact that when engaged in entrepreneurial activities, parties merge with financial and industrial capital.
Private financing. This includes voluntary donations from individuals and legal entities. Most democratic states legally limit or completely prohibit financial support for political parties from charitable and religious organizations, state-owned enterprises, anonymous donors, and from abroad. Thus, in the USA and Israel it is prohibited to accept assistance from private legal entities (societies, organizations, firms, etc.). Sometimes both the amount of donations and the specific activities to be financed are determined by law.
Government funding. The state provides direct financial support to those parties that have passed the electoral threshold. There is a practice of distributing finances depending on the number of votes received by a party in elections (Germany, Sweden). In Denmark, Finland, and Italy, the amount of financial assistance is determined by the number of parliamentary mandates received. In addition, there is also indirect government support for political parties. Parties are provided with free airtime, space for publications and statements in the media, etc.
The leadership of a political party must publish reports on the sources of financial income, expenditure of funds, and property of the party. Almost all countries have restrictions on spending on election campaigns.