ABSTRACT
The previous chapter notes that party system competitiveness and aggregation are distinct and unrelated concepts. Party system stability—meaning little change across elections—too is distinct from the concept of competitiveness. A party system can be relatively competitive and relatively stable (as in the United States) or very uncompetitive yet very stable (as in China). Although party system aggregation and stability are also distinct concepts, they are somewhat related empirically. We return to this relationship later.
