Ideological determinants of the dissolution of anti-establishment parties

What is it about?

Examining justice-level determinants of party dissolution decisions can reveal how high Courts may influence the public choice by constraining the representation of political ideologies. We argue that Constitutional Court justices strategically engage in politics through party dissolution cases, and act to guard the regime against anti-establishment ideologies. By introducing a unique dataset from Turkey, we demonstrate that communist, religious and ethnic parties in Turkey with considerable public support are more likely to be dissolved by justices having an activist and pro-status quo ideological stance.

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Why is it important?

We suggest that examining the justice and party-level determinants of party dissolution decisions can provide scholars with an understanding of how, and to what extent, high Courts can indirectly overrule public choice by limiting the representation of diverse political ideologies. This article is the first empirical assessment of how the ideological dispositions of the justices of the Constitutional Court of Turkey influence their decisions in dissolution cases against political parties representing anti-establishment ideologies. In this regard, we both assess the validity of the attitudinal model and demonstrate that the judiciary, often considered the least dangerous branch, plays a decisive role in shaping the political sphere. Given that some other European high courts have also attempted to curb anti establishment ideologies, our findings have broader implications for the comparative judicial politics literature.