An index of assembly dissolution powers

Journal article

Assembly dissolution is a key dimension of constitutional variation in parlia- mentary democracies. It conditions the timing of elections, influences electoral accountability, and shapes how politicians bargain about government formation, termination, and policy. Yet, despite the importance of dissolution rules, no mea- sure exists that applies to the different actors involved in dissolutions and records the complexity of the rules sufficiently accurately to capture their substantive im- plications. This paper develops, operationalizes and tests a detailed index of parlia- mentary dissolution powers that generalizes to all relevant actors. We demonstrate the substantive utility of the index by examining how election timing powers mod- ify electoral accountability.

Authors: Schleiter, P; Goplerud, M

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Journal: Comparative Political Studies
• Volume: 49
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 427-456
• Publication date: 2016-03-01
• DOI: 10.1177/0010414015612393
• EISSN: 1552-3829
• ISSN: 0010-4140
• Keywords: parliamentary dissolution; electoral accountability; comparative political institutions; developed parliamentary democracies