Political Party Development and Party "Gravity" in Semi-Authoritarian States the Cases of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan

Abstract

What has affected the development of political parties in the competitive authoritarian regimes of the former Soviet Union? In this essay, the author examines the development of political parties in the predominantly Muslim Central Eurasian states of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. In particular, he examines the extent to which political parties have become the primary channels for political recruitment, or the extent to which they have political gravity for electoral candidates. The author finds the greatest level of party gravity in Tajikistan, followed by Azerbaijan, and then Kyrgyzstan. A variety of social and political explanations are provided to account for these differences.