Authors: Bogdanor
Summary: In about 1600 words, this entry discusses the origins of political parties, explains why parties are so significant politically, and offers a definition for the term.
Although their origins are essentially western, political parties exist in virtually every contemporary governmental system. The emergence of modern parties, constitutionalism and representative government are closely linked. Party scholars generally agree about a couple ideas. First is the notion that the emergence of political parties marks a critical juncture in western political development because it represents the institutionalization of organized competition for power. Second, scholars also agree about two basic types of parties: those initially generated inside the legislature and those born as social movements or interest groups outside the legislature. The entry discusses each of these commonalities and offers examples as well.
Parties across the political spectrum share an important institutional trait--they provide the link between the formal government system and the different elements comprising civil society. Thus, political parties exist along the boundary between the formal and informal segments of the sociopolitical system. Unlike interest groups, which seek only to exert influence, political parties endeavor to gain positions within the formal power structure.
The entry concludes by reemphasising the defining characteristic of political parties: they are the linking mechanism between state institutions and civil society. Although most of the constitutional scholarship all but ignores this linkage role, it is vital to the proper functioning of complex modern societies. However, as the entry also points out, no definition of political party would be complete without some reference to their role in winning elective offices.