Party competition and party survival in sub-national elections.

What is it about?

Why some regions have more stable party systems than others? How can we explain the demise of regional party branches? This paper analyses the electoral trajectories of regional party branches to explain why some parties live long and successful political lives while others disappear after few elections. It shows that decentralization contributes to a more unstable regional party system as it increases the risk that new parties will disappear after just a few elections. The reason behind this is that decentralization makes regional elections more important for consolidated parties to win, increasing competition and therefore, it prevents new parties from using sub-national elections to get experience and signal their electoral viability.

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Why is it important?

This study does not focus on the relationship between national and sub-national party systems, but rather looks at how decentralization affects the success and survival rate of new parties competing at the regional level. It explicitly recognizes that the fate of new parties is intertwined with that of their consolidated competitors and that making the decision to develop a regional electoral strategy does not necessarily guarantee the success of the party. This research contributes to filling the gap that party studies still have a "regional blind spot". By doing so, it does not focus on aggregate effects but rather shows the direct consequences of institutions on the survival of parties competing in regional elections in Europe.

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