Journal Articles

Electoral regimes and party-switching: Floor-crossing in South Africa's local legislatures

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This article presents an inquiry into the causes of party-switching under two different electoral regimes. It exploits a natural experiment in South Africa, where a large number of local legislatures are elected using the same mixed system, to examine how the party-switching behaviours of legislators elected under proportional representation (PR) rules may differ systematically from those of legislators elected from single-member districts. It confirms the findings of other single-legislature studies in concluding that PR legislators are more likely, ceteris paribus, to defect. It highlights several characteristics of legislative bodies and legislative districts that influence defection rates for legislators in South Africa. In so doing, it uncovers evidence that, despite the young age of South Africa’s post-1994 party system, the unexpectedly large volume of party-switching that occurred there was neither a simple party realignment nor an opportunistic scramble, but rather a highly organized, structured and strategic market for parties.

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Detail Information

Series Title

Party Politics

Call Number

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Publisher

Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage Publications., 2012

Collation

p. 563-579

Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

1354-0688

Classification

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Content Type

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Media Type

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Carrier Type

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Edition

Volume 18, Number 4, July 2012 p. 563-579

Subject(s)

South Africa
electoral systems
Statistical analysis
party allegiance

Specific Detail Info

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Statement of Responsibility

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