Party systems - the mirror of the life of the country

Party systems are a phenomenon linking all aspects of life in every single country. What explains such a bold statement? First of all, the essence of this phenomenon, a detailed consideration of which will be presented below.

Party systems and their types

In political science, it is customary to start considering any social phenomenon with its characteristics. In this sense, party systems are special forms of organizing political power in a country where its main elements are the determining factor - political parties. The definition appears rather vague, and therefore it is necessary to identify the main features of the phenomenon under consideration.

Party systems are characterized by:

- the relationship with the state - it is in this case how much the state apparatus interacts with the party;

- the presence of legal parties - i.e. Their legal approval by the state;

- the number of parties actually participating in political life ;

- the possibility of creating legal coalitions.

In this regard, it is necessary to change the above definition. Thus, party systems are special forms of organizing political life in the country, according to which the number of key elements of the phenomenon under consideration and their mutual relations are determined.

However, the signs are not only the basis of the characteristic. In fact, they stipulate the classifications to which party systems are subjected. And their types can be represented as follows:

- by the number of parties active in the country (JS Sartori's typology) - one-party (Cuba), with the leading party (China), with the prevailing or dominant party (Japan until 1993), a system of simple pluralism (USA), moderate pluralism Germany), extreme pluralism (the number of parties is more than 5, for example, Italy);

- a simpler division on the same trait leads most political scientists, but it looks like this: one-party, two-party, atomized (unlimited number of parties) and multi-party.

- by the legality of the existence of parties - non-party, with a fixed and roll-call list of parties, with a free number of parties.

The three classifications presented are basic. Whatever it was, most political scientists share party systems exclusively in terms of the number of parties and freedom of access to political life. It is this approach that reveals the relationship between the system and its main element.

Political parties and party systems

The political party is always the main element of the phenomenon under consideration. On the basis of the content of the current players in the political arena, the whole of the current system and its development are formed. Or rather - the transition from one species to another.

The content of a political party is determined by the means by which it attains influence in the state. The funds are divided into democratic and quasi-democratic. In history, there are many examples where the hidden concerns of the people and their interests de facto methods were authoritarian. This situation is explained by the simple use of the institution of suffrage, which is inherent in most modern countries.

So, political parties and party systems are connected in the following aspects:

- The party system determines which parties and in what quantity will operate in the territory of a certain state;

- The actual number of parties in the political arena of the country determines the type of the system, and, consequently, its development;

- the legal consolidation of the system depends on which parties are currently in power;

- a change in the actual number and quality of political parties inevitably leads to the transformation of the system.

These are the key key points that determine the type of government and political regime in the country, as well as the essence of the state itself.