Downs (1957) has proposed that new political parties may be formed in order to change the policy positions of established parties. Rather than seeking to implement their own manifestos directly from government office, some new parties may seek to influence the manifestos of established parties in order to see their policy goals realized. While the notion is old, it has not been studied extensively. This paper seeks to find out under what conditions established parties take over policy positions specific to new parties. It looks at two points in time when an established party can do so: in anticipation, i.e., before a new party enters parliament, and in reaction, i.e., after a new party has entered parliament. To this end, the paper will study the anticipatory behaviour and reactions of all established parties to all new parties entering the Dutch political system since 1946.

Political parties are the building blocks of representative democracy since they traditionally perform roles that are considered essential for the functioning and well-being of democracy. In the study and evaluation of the democratic system as a whole, as a general rule, parties are treated as unitary actors. Most political parties, however, are membership organizations and their external functioning is partly dependent on internal affairs, including the behavior and opinions of their members. In this paper we open the black box of parties and show on the basis of a 2008 survey among seven political parties how united or divided ordinary Dutch party members are with respect to various political issues and orientations. It is shown that most parties are rather united on most issues. They are least united on two of the most pertinent issues of today’s politics, i.e. the integration of ethnic minorities and European integration.

Compulsory voting was abolished in the Netherlands in 1970 without a thorough debate about the likely consequences. On several occasions, I have recommended its retention in countries that have it and its introduction in countries that do not have it. Compulsory voting has a positive effect on turnout and is a guarantee for equal electoral participation by different groups in society. However, the debate is far from closed. In particular, the relationship between compulsory voting and type of democracy (majoritarian vs consensus democracy, majoritarian vs proportional electoral systems) requires further research.