ABSTRACT
MAURICE DUVERGER (1972:1-2), one of the most infl uential thinkers about political parties and party systems, argues that what makes parties diff erent from other organizations is that, in contrast to interest groups, they “draw their support from a broad base,” and “they have as their primary goal the conquest of power or a share in its exercise.” Most political parties do this primarily through contesting elections, but sometimes they work through other means-for example, propagating a revolution or mobilizing for democratization against a dictatorship. Parties emerging from revolutionary processes (see chapters 9 and 10 ) are oft en charged with mobilizing society for carrying out social and economic change. Even in polyarchies , parties usually do more than just mobilize voters. Th ey fulfi ll important functions critical to governance, including organizing the legislative process, recruiting people to serve in government, and informing the public.
