Party conflict regulation and intra-party hierarchy in contemporary party organization

ABSTRACT This paper is concerned with one important dimension of intra-organizational hierarchy that has to date received only little attention in cross-national party research, although its relevance has grown in light of both the increasing empowerment of rank-and-file members and the growing inclusiveness of contemporary party organizations: the range of monitoring and disciplinary mechanisms available to parties to manage internal differences and dissent essential to assure the day-to-day functioning of complex organizations. Based on the distinction between ‘organizational control’ and ‘leadership power’ that can be exercised through these mechanisms, this paper explores how the availability and nature of such mechanisms in party statutes is shaped by differences in ideology on the party level and the legal regulation of intra-party conflict regulation on the system level. Patterns are examined with regard to state-wide parties in Germany and Spain, two countries that regulate intra-party conflict legally, and the UK and Ireland, two countries that do not.