ABSTRACT

Democracy requires leaders to be accountable as well as elected. Accountability is exercised by citizens voting for or against the governing party on the basis of its past performance. But in order for this to happen, the party system must be institutionalized, that is, the same parties must compete at one election after another. People cannot vote for or against a party nor can politicians be held accountable if a party has disappeared from the ballot before the end of a parliament. When the same parties compete at one election after another, then differences in the parties’ share of the vote reflect individuals floating between parties. However, when political elites form new parties or split or merge from one election to the next, this creates a floating party system.