ABSTRACT
In Slovakia a party’s seats in parliament are notable not only for how many there are but also for where they are located within the parliamentary chamber. How MPs choose to arrange seating indicates a great deal about how those MPs expect parliament to function. During the communist era, MPs were seated in parliament in alphabetical order. After the 1990 elections, seats were grouped according to party and parties were ranged from the largest to the smallest. After the 1994 elections, seating arrangements continued according to party size but within blocs representing the governing coalition and the opposition. Simultaneous with these changes, Slovakia’s parliament as a whole has changed from an environment where party membership could be ignored to one where party membership played a decisive role. As with seating, party position in parliament has subsequently been shaped by sharp divisions along governmentopposition lines.
