The Continued Relevance of Local Parties in Representative Democracies
| Author | Alistair Clark |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1467-9256.2004.00203.x |
| Published date | 01 February 2004 |
| Date | 01 February 2004 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
© Political Studies Association, 2004.
Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA
The Continued Relevance of Local
Parties in Representative Democracies
Alistair Clark
University of Aberdeen
This article assesses the value of local parties. It asks why political parties value their local sec-
tions. It also considers the ways in which local parties can benefit society. Local parties act as a
democratic training ground for party members, are a conduit for political communication and
provide parties with a range of resources. They also act as problem solving agencies; they ensure
that policy is responsive to local needs; they provide an additional channel of communication
and accountability; and they link citizens with the state. The article ends with an appeal to party
scholars to refocus their attention towards local parties.
‘Local party organisation is most likely not as important to the national political
party as was hitherto the case’ (Webb, 1995, p. 312, italics added).
‘Since my appointment I have visited about a third of our Scottish constituen-
cies and already there are many more visits booked. I am always pleased to
receive invitations to support the vital work you do. You, above all, deserve our
thanks, for it is you that make our party work ... (Lait, 2002).
It has become commonplace for political scientists to observe that traditional forms
of political participation such as voting and party membership are in decline. One
perspective is that citizens have somehow become ‘spectators’ of politics. Jan Van
Deth (2000) for instance argues that politics is ‘interesting but irrelevant’ to a sig-
nificant proportion of people. More particularly, Jorgen Goul Andersen and Lars
Torpe (2000, p. 6) suggest that although citizens may be engaged, the political
opportunity structure gives them few opportunities to communicate with national
decision-makers. They label this situation one of ‘broken linkages’ between citi-
zens and state. This therefore argues for a closer examination of one particular
element of the political opportunity structure, local parties,1as they potentially play
a central role in providing political linkage. While a ‘revisionist school’ has recently
come to prominence by pointing out the benefits of both local campaigning and
party members to national parties (for example: Denver and Hands, 1997; John-
ston and Pattie, 1995; Scarrow, 1996; Whiteley and Seyd, 1994; Whiteley, Seyd
and Richardson, 1994; Widfeldt, 1999), the broader role of local parties is only con-
sidered as an implicit by-product of this literature.2This is a serious oversight
because it is at the local level that parties are closest to the electorate. Any assess-
ment of how political parties and democracies are working therefore needs to con-
sider fully the role played by local parties. This article is intended as a preliminary
step in this investigation. The first section acknowledges arguments that have led
to local parties being largely ignored in political debate. The second part asks why
POLITICS: 2004 VOL 24(1), 35–45
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