Liberal Parties in Western Europe (Hardcover)

This book is a comparative study of liberal parties in Western Europe, examining the role and development of liberal parties within individual countries; their internal party structure and organization; electoral audiences; coalitions and government participation; party programmes and strategies; and international and cross-national links. It not only tries to fill a gap in the study of political parties cross-nationally, but also to highlight the important role liberal parties play in the political systems of Western Europe. Whilst it is undeniable that most liberal parties in Western Europe are small and as a result are not able to dominate any government in which they participate, they have sometimes been in a position to exert influence which bears little relation either to their voting base within the electorate as a whole or their parliamentary strength. This is most obviously true in the case of the Free Democrats (FDP) in the Federal Republic of Germany, with the party long being able to play a crucial pivotal role.