Afonso, A., Zartaloudis, S. & Papadopoulos, Y. (2014) “How party linkages shape austerity politics: clientelism and fiscal adjustment in Greece and Portugal during the eurozone crisis“, Journal of European Public Policy, 29 Οκτωβρίου.
Drawing on an analysis of austerity reforms in Greece and Portugal during the sovereign debt crisis from 2009 onwards, we show how the nature of the linkages between parties and citizens shapes party strategies of fiscal retrenchment. We argue that parties which rely to a greater extent on the selective distribution of state resources to mobilize electoral support (clientelistic linkages) are more reluctant to agree to fiscal retrenchment because their own electoral survival depends on their ability to control state budgets to reward clients. In Greece, where parties relied extensively on these clientelistic linkages, austerity reforms have been characterized by recurring conflicts and disagreements between the main parties, as well as a fundamental transformation of the party system. By contrast, in Portugal, where parties relied less on clientelistic strategies, austerity reforms have been more consensual because fiscal retrenchment challenged to a lesser extent the electoral base of the mainstream parties.
Σχετικές αναρτήσεις:
- Afonso, A., Zartaloudis, S. & Papadopoulos, Y. (2014) “Lower levels of clientelism in Portuguese politics explain why Portugal handled austerity better than Greece during the crisis“, LSE EUROPP, 27 Οκτωβρίου.
- Mazzolini, G. & Mody, A. (2014) “Austerity Tales: the Netherlands and Italy“, Bruegel Think Tank, 03 Οκτωβρίου.
- Stiglitz, J. (2014) “Europe’s Austerity Disaster“, Social Europe Journal, 29 Σεπτεμβρίου.