From private organizations to democratic infrastructure: Political parties and the state in Estonia

Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics

Volumn 22, Issue 3, 2006, Pages 341-361

  Sikk, Allan ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF TARTU   (Estonia)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

DEMOCRATIZATION; INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT; LEGISLATION; PARTY POLITICS; POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT; POST-COMMUNISM; STATE LED DEVELOPMENT;

BALTIC STATES; ESTONIA; EURASIA; EUROPE; NORTHERN EUROPE;

EID: 33747612628     PISSN: 13523279     EISSN: 17439116     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/13523270600855720     Document Type: Article

References (38)

1. Richard S. Katz and Peter Mair, 'Changing Models of Party Organization and Party Democracy: The Emergence of the Cartel Party', Party Politics, Vol.1, No.1 (1995), pp.5-28.
2. Herbert Kitschelt, 'Citizens, Politicians, and Party Cartellization: Political Representation and State Failure in Post-industrial Democracies', European Journal of Political Research, Vol.37, No.2 (2000), pp.149-79;
3. and Ruud Koole, 'Cadre, Catch-all or Cartel? A Comment on the Notion of the Cartel Party', Party Politics, Vol.2, No.4 (1996), pp.509-25.
4. Ingrid van Biezen and Petr Kopecký, 'On the Predominance of State Money: Reassessing Party Financing in the New Democracies of Southern and Eastern Europe', Perspectives on European Politics and Society, Vol.2, No.3 (2001), pp.401-29,
5. Michal Klíma, 'Consolidation and Stabilization of the Party System in the Czech Republic', in Richard Hofferbert (ed.), Parties and Democracy (Oxford: Blackwell, 1998), pp.70-88;
6. and Aleks Szczerbiak, 'Cartelization in Post-Communist Politics: State Party Funding in Post-1989 Poland', Perspectives on European Politics and Society, Vol.2, No.3 (2001), pp.431-51.
7. Ingrid van Biezen and Petr Kopecký, 'The State and the Parties: Public funding, public regulation and party patronage in contemporary democracies', paper prepared for the conference 'Political Parties and Political Development', National Democratic Institute, Washington DC, 31 Aug. 2005;
8. Ingrid van Biezen, 'Political Parties as Public Utilities', Party Politics, Vol.10, No.6 (2004), pp.701-22;
9. and Anna Grzymala-Busse, 'Political Competition and the Politicization of the State in East Central Europe', Comparative Political Studies, Vol.36, No.10 (2003), pp.1123-47.
10. The term has been proposed in Van Biezen, 'Political Parties as Public Utilities'.
11. Tiina Randma-Liiv, 'A Small Civil Service in Transition: The Case of Estonia', Public Administration and Development, Vol.21, No.1 (2001), pp.41-51.
12. Van Biezen and Kopecký 'The State and the Parties'.
13. Tiina Randma-Liiv, 'Small States and Bureaucracy: Challenges for Public Administration', Trames, Vol.6, No.4 (2002), pp.374-89.
14. At the time of writing, its fortunes have turned and the party is struggling near the five per cent threshold in opinion polls.
15. Although ethnic Russians comprise more than a quarter of Estonia's population, the ethnic dimension has faded in party politics since 1999. At present there are no Russian parties in the parliament and most major parties also try to mobilize ethnic Russian voters.
16. Interestingly, when presenting the draft Act to parliament, the minister of justice linked the special and semi-public status of political parties to the fact that other NGOs do not receive subventions from the state budget.
17. Elections in many smaller municipalities have been fought mostly or exclusively between electoral coalitions. Indeed, in municipalities with a few thousand voters, there would be a contradiction between the party membership requirement and ensuring genuine political competition. The amendments to the local elections act were also criticized as an attempt to 'partify' municipalities by force. The criticism was fuelled by the fact that coalitions were outlawed only six months before the 2002 local elections.
18. When the lists were publicized, many people found themselves listed without being aware of their membership. They were normally deleted from the lists. However, many probably remain ignorant even of the fact that the lists are public and will not have checked them (it is possible only over the internet). Not too much trust should be put in the membership lists. Some parties with the required number of members have failed to contest any elections. Also, there has been a party with a voter:mEmbership ratio below one - despite fulfilling the membership criterion, the Russian Party in Estonia won less than 1,000 votes in the 2003 parliamentary elections.
19. Randma-Liiv, 'A Small Civil Service in Transition'.
20. The number of inhabitants was 1,347,510 in 2005: Statistical Office of Estonia, at, http://pub.stat.ee/px-web.2001/dialog/statfileri.asp.; accessed 18 June 2005. A considerable portion of adults are Russophone non-citizens; the number of adult citizens was only 859,714 in 2003: Vabariigi Valimiskomisjon (Estonian National Electoral Committee), at, http://www.vvk.ee.; accessed 30 Oct. 2005.
21. See Paul Sutton, 'Political Aspects', in C. Clarke and T. Payne (eds.), Politics, Security and Development in Small States (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1987), pp.3-25;
22. and Randma-Liiv, 'Small states and bureaucracy'.
23. Very little assistance to farmers existed in Estonia prior to the accession to the EU, except for ad hoc support in case of drought or other adverse climate conditions.
24. The ministries of agriculture and environment have received their share of attention regarding partisan-based nominations: Hindrek Riikoja, 'Rahvaliitlased on võtnud enda kätte põllumajandusvaldkonna juhtimise', Postimees, 31 Oct. 2005.
25. Until the political parties act of 1994, the parties were registered according to the civic unions' act, and were not differentiated from other NGOs.
26. That also led to the provision that Estonian parties could not form sub-units abroad, because of fear of the formation of divisions of Russian parties in Estonia.
27. Ü lle Madise and Allan Sikk, 'Die Institution der politischen Partei in Estland', in D. Th. Tsatsos, D. Schefold and H.-P. Schneider (eds.), Parteienrecht im europäischen Vergleich, Die Parteien in den demokratischen Ordnungen der Staaten der Europäischen Gemeinschaft, 2nd edn (Baden-Baden: Nomos, forthcoming, 2006).
28. For such practices in Hungary see Jan Meyer-Sahling in this collection.
29. Randma-Liiv, 'Small states and bureaucracy', p.39.
30. The latter two categories only in cases when the person has also been in national political office.
31. However, the reasons for civil servants entering politics may be more complex, including the possibility of being afraid of losing their position after a change in government when they remain neutral or appear to be on the 'wrong' side of the political divide.
32. That mostly covers more recent cases, and some may join the civil service again in the future.
33. 'Reformierakond pakub Ignar Fjukki riigikontrolöriks', Eesti Päevaleht, 28 Aug. 2002, 'Reformierakond pakub Tiit Käbinit õiguskantsleriks', Eesti Päevaleht, 22 Nov. 2000.
34. The regional minister threatened to resign over the issue, as the prime minister sometimes did not discuss the nominations of acting governors with him: Kalle Muuli, 'Minister Jaan Ö unapuu ähvardas ametist lahkuda', Postimees, 5 Dec. 2003.
35. Ibid.
36. 'Õ unapuu esitab kolm maavanema kandidaati', Eesti Päevaleht, 8 Oct. 2004.
37. As of October 2005, four assistant ministers were serving in Estonian ministries.
38. Estonia has a total of 11 ministries; the latest merger included the ministries of economics, and transport and communications.