Predicting Party Sizes: The Logic of Simple Electoral Systems

Contents......Page 12
List of Figures......Page 14
List of Tables......Page 16
List of Symbols......Page 20
1. How Electoral Systems Matter......Page 24
Part I. Rules and Tools......Page 34
2. The Origins and Components of Electoral Systems......Page 36
3. Electoral Systems—Simple and Complex......Page 46
4. The Number and Balance of Parties......Page 70
5. Deviation from Proportional Representation and Proportionality Profiles......Page 88
6. Openness to Small Parties: The Micro-Mega Rule and the Seat Product......Page 106
Part II. The Duvergerian Macro-Agenda: How Simple Electoral Systems Affect Party Sizes and Politics......Page 122
7. The Duvergerian Agenda......Page 124
8. The Number of Seat-Winning Parties and the Largest Seat Share......Page 138
9. Seat Shares of All Parties and the Effective Number of Parties......Page 166
10. The Mean Duration of Cabinets......Page 188
11. How to Simplify Complex Electoral Systems......Page 200
12. Size and Politics......Page 210
13. The Law of Minority Attrition......Page 224
14. The Institutional Impact on Votes and Deviation from PR......Page 248
Part III. Implications and Broader Agenda......Page 262
15. Thresholds of Representation and the Number of Pertinent Electoral Parties......Page 264
16. Seat Allocation in Federal Second Chambers and the Assemblies of the European Union......Page 278
17. What Can We Expect from Electoral Laws?......Page 292
Appendix: Detecting Factors Other than the Seat Product......Page 310
References......Page 316
C......Page 330
D......Page 331
G......Page 332
K......Page 333
N......Page 334
Q......Page 335
S......Page 336
Z......Page 337