Bringing Ideology in: Differing Oppositional Challenges to Hegemony in Singapore and Malaysia

2015 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 483-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walid Jumblatt Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Transition Theory ◽  
Hegemonic Parties ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

This article explores the nature of the main opposition parties to the incumbent hegemonic regimes in Malaysia and Singapore. I argue that the differing characters of these opposition parties should be considered. In Singapore, where there is no ideological challenge to the ruling party, I contend that even if the opposition takes over it will be the end of a hegemonic party but not hegemony. In Malaysia, the opposite is true. This article contributes to the literature on transition theory in two ways: (1) it recognizes the diversity of authoritarian regimes and enhances analyses of various authoritarian regimes by focusing on one type – hegemonic parties; and (2) it brings ideology into the reckoning by focusing on the nature of the opposition parties most likely to take over.

LIBERAL TAIWAN VERSUS ILLIBERAL SOUTH KOREA: THE DIVERGENT PATHS OF ELECTION CAMPAIGN REGULATION

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 437-462
Author(s):  
Jong-sung You ◽  
Jiun-Da Lin
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Democratic Transition ◽  
Path Dependence ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Election Campaign ◽  
Incumbency Advantage ◽  
South Korean ◽  
Critical Junctures ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

AbstractSouth Korea and Taiwan have developed very different sets of election campaign regulations. While both countries had highly restrictive campaign rules during the authoritarian era, they have diverged since democratic transition. South Korea still imposes numerous restrictions on campaigning activities, but Taiwan has removed most of the restrictions. We explore the causes of these divergent trajectories through comparative historical process tracing, focusing on critical junctures and path dependence. We find that incumbency advantage and containment of new opposition parties were the primary objectives of introducing stringent regulations under the authoritarian regimes in both countries. The key difference was that, during the democratic transition, legislators affiliated with the opposition parties as well as the ruling party in South Korea enjoyed the incumbency advantage but that opposition forces in Taiwan did not. As a result, the opposition in Taiwan fought for liberalization of campaign regulations, but the South Korean opposition did not.

Singapore's Pandemic Election: Opposition Parties and Valence Politics in GE2020

2020 ◽  
Vol 93 (4) ◽  
pp. 759-780
Author(s):  
Steven Oliver ◽  
Kai Ostwald
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Group Representation ◽  
Fourth Generation ◽  
Voting Behaviour ◽  
Popular Vote ◽  
Economic Crises ◽  
Safe Alternative ◽  
Strong Performance ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

Singapore's 2020 general election was held amidst the most serious public health and economic crises in the country's history. Despite expectations that these parallel crises would precipitate a flight to safety and result in a strong performance by the dominant People's Action Party (PAP), the ruling party received its third-lowest popular vote share (61.2 percent) and lowest-ever seat share (89.2 percent) since independence. This article engages explanations for the unexpected results and argues that the vote swing against the PAP was enabled by a hitherto largely overlooked factor: the 2020 election included two opposition parties that could credibly compete with the PAP on the valence considerations that drive voting behaviour in Singapore, giving voters a perceived safe alternative to the PAP at the constituency level. Quantitative tests support the notion that party credibility—rather than demographic factors, incumbency advantages, Group Representation Constituencies, or assessments of the PAP's fourth- generation leaders—best explains variation in the vote swing against the PAP. Ultimately, the results suggest that the PAP's monopoly on party credibility is no longer assured, thus portending greater opposition competitiveness and pressure against the PAP in future elections. Nonetheless, the PAP's dominance remains intact and there is little evidence of a general appetite among the electorate for a non-PAP government, suggesting the likelihood of smaller course corrections rather than major steps towards democratization in the coming years.

Repeated Multiparty Elections in Cambodia: Intensifying Authoritarianism Yet Benefiting the Masses

2020 ◽  
Vol 93 (3) ◽  
pp. 567-592
Author(s):  
Sivhuoch Ou
Keyword(s):  
Economic Policy ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Party System ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
People's Party ◽  
Dominant Party ◽  
Authoritarian Government ◽  
The Masses ◽  
Ruling Party

The United Nations (UN) introduced multiparty elections to Cambodia in 1993 in the hope of bringing about democracy in that country. Ironically, the two-and-a-half decades of uninterrupted elections have led to an ever-more authoritarian government under Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Cambodian People's Party (CPP). Authoritarianism under the single-dominant party system began in 1997, but has intensified since 2017 with the ban on the leading opposition party. While concurring that repetitive elections have consolidated authoritarianism, this paper argues that elections are not merely tools that authoritarian leaders deploy to hold on to power. Elections are arguably mechanisms that have compelled the CPP to offer several extraordinary economic concessions since 2013; this is the first argument of the paper. The developments have created a win-win scenario for the rulers and the ruled—the authoritarian leaders prolong their rule, and the masses have more disposable income, among various benefits. The second argument is that such policy concessions are made only when the ruling party senses critical challenges from the opposition and voters. This paper contributes to the literature arguing that multiparty elections in electoral authoritarian regimes extract economic policy concessions.

Singapore’s 2011 General Elections and Beyond

Asian Survey ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 749-772 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elvin Ong ◽  
Mou Hui Tim
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Credible Commitment ◽  
Commitment Problem ◽  
General Elections ◽  
Hegemonic Parties ◽  
Credibility Gap ◽  
Opposition Parties

We introduce the concept of a “credibility gap” to explain why the Workers’ Party has been more successful than other opposition political parties in recent elections in Singapore. We argue that opposition parties need to overcome a credible commitment problem with the electorate in order to win against hegemonic parties.

Bound to Rule: Party Institutions and Regime Trajectories in Malaysia and the Philippines

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Brownlee
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Paired Comparison ◽  
Electoral Politics ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Hybrid Regime ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

This article revisits the electoral emphasis of hybrid regime studies, arguing instead that the impact of elections is structured by variations in prior political institutions, particularly the dismantlement or maintenance of a ruling party. Duration tests on 136 regimes indicate that ruling parties reduce the chance of regime collapse, while “electoral autocracy” has no significant effect. A paired comparison of Malaysia and the Philippines then shows how variations in party institutions propelled divergent courses of authoritarian dominance and democratization. During the late 1980s and 1990s, Malaysia's ruling party (UMNO) bound together otherwise fractious leaders, twice deflecting potent electoral challenges. By contrast, when Ferdinand Marcos abandoned the Nacionalista Party after 1972, he fueled the movement that would subsequently oust him. The efficacy of opposition parties Semangat '46 and United Nationalist Democratic Opposition (UNIDO) was thus heavily imbricated with the institutions of the regimes they challenged and less contingent on short-term electoral politics.

scholarly journals MASS MOBILIZATION AND AUTOCRATIC CONCESSIONS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 98-106
Author(s):  
Andrey Semenov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Study ◽  
Institutional Theory ◽  
Statistical Modeling ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Mass Movements ◽  
Mass Mobilization ◽  
Subsequent Research ◽  
Representation Of Interests ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Opposition Parties

Why are some authoritarian regimes more inclined to make concessions to mass movements than others? In this article, based on the institutional theory of autocracies, I posit that institutionalized regimes should be more prone to concessions than regimes without parties and elected parliaments. This expectation is due to the capacity of the institutions to provide an opportunity for negotiation and representation of interests of mass movements, thus I expect the dictators in such regimes to bow more frequently to the demands of mass movements. Using the NAVCO database, the Barbara Geddes typology, and indicators of the institutionalization of autocracies, I test hypotheses about the relationship between institutions and concessions on a global sample of authoritarian regimes from 1946 to 2010. The results of statistical modeling do not confirm the hypotheses and, if anything, demonstrate that there are no serious differences between the types of authoritarian regimes regarding compliance with the demands of mass movements; moreover, the institutionalized autocracies are somewhat less inclined to satisfy the demand than dictatorships without elected parliaments and independent opposition parties. This empirical pattern points to a number of interesting questions for subsequent research on the links between institutions and the dynamics of mobilization in authoritarian regimes.

Singapore ruling party faces critical contest

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Prime Minister ◽  
Electoral Politics ◽  
September 11 ◽  
General Election ◽  
Foreign Workers ◽  
Founding Father ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The City ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

Subject Outlook for Singapore's 2015 general election. Significance Singapore will hold a general election on September 11, its first since the death of the city-state's founding father, Lee Kuan Yew. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has braced his long-incumbent People's Action Party (PAP) for a more difficult contest at the polls than in 2011, with opposition parties expected to better the 10% share of parliamentary seats they held on the dissolution of parliament on August 25. Impacts The People's Action Party will need to define a post-Lee Kuan Yew legacy. The post-September government will need to balance popular concern over foreign workers with Singapore's need for labour. Singaporean electoral politics will become increasingly competitive.

Oromo coalition will trouble Ethiopia’s ruling party

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Prime Minister ◽  
Addis Ababa ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Coalition Building ◽  
National Party ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Home State ◽  
Democratic Dialogue ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

Subject Coalition-building ahead of Ethiopia's 2020 elections. Significance Following months of negotiations, the leaders of the three biggest Oromo opposition parties -- the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and Oromo National Party (ONP) -- on January 3 announced the formation of the Coalition for Democratic Federalism (CDF). This new platform will pose a serious electoral challenge to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s newly formed Prosperity Party (formerly the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF)) in Oromia, Abiy’s home state. Impacts As the OFC is already a member of the Forum for Democratic Dialogue in Ethiopia (MEDREK) opposition alliance, the CDF may also join. Ethiopia’s first-past-the-post electoral system will encourage further coalition-building, especially among opposition parties. If the CDF pushes claims of Oromo ‘ownership’ over Addis Ababa, this would complicate relations with other actors.

Guyana election doubts spark international concern

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
International Community ◽  
Focus Attention ◽  
National Unity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Election Result ◽  
Oil Revenues ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

Significance These results indicate that the incumbent A Partnership for National Unity-Alliance for Change (APNU-AFC) coalition has narrowly won re-election, returning David Granger as president for another term. However, opposition parties have contested the results, with the international community also voicing concerns about the conduct and outcome of the elections. Impacts The contested election count is likely to lead to an overhaul of GECOM staffing and procedures once the current dispute is settled. Companies are set to hold off new investments in Guyana until the incoming government and policy stance are confirmed. The fraud allegations will also focus attention on May elections in neighbouring Suriname, whose ruling party is also seeking re-election. Control over expected windfall oil revenues will make this election result especially hotly contested.

Explaining Hungary's powerful Constitutional Court: a bargaining approach

2001 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 357-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOHN W. SCHIEMANN
Keyword(s):  
Round Table ◽  
Transition To Democracy ◽  
Institutional Choice ◽  
Constitutional Court ◽  
Bargaining Model ◽  
Key Participants ◽  
Bargaining Approach ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Opposition Parties

Chosen during its negotiated transition to democracy in 1989, Hungary's Constitutional Court has emerged as one of the most powerful institutions of its kind. Drawing on round table transcripts and interviews with key participants, this paper presents a bargaining model of institutional choice that demonstrates how the greater patience of the opposition parties forced the ruling party to make significant concessions that increased the authority and independence of the court.

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