Political Parties in Transition? reviews the recent developments affecting the major parties and the party system in Australia and asks the question: Are Australia’s major parties acting like a cartel?

The book includes detailed coverage about the evolution of the Australian Labor Party and the Liberal-National Party Coalition, as well as the role of emergent parties such as the Greens. Consideration is given to whether these emergent parties have the capacity, or indeed the opportunity, to challenge major party dominance.

The book also examines the evidence for and against the idea that the major parties have colluded to maintain their dominance of the system. The authors consider whether recent policy and other changes affecting party resources and party positioning have helped advantage the major parties. For example, cases where public funding disproportionately favours incumbents or when elites of both major parties agree about policy fundamentals and thereby limit political choice.

With a depth of analysis suitable for postgraduate and undergraduate levels, Political Parties in Transition? is essential reading for students of political science and Australian studies or anyone interested in Australian politics today.

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: Australia’s political cartel? The major parties and the party system in an era of globalisation - Ian Marsh
CHAPTER 2: Party structures and processes - Dean Jaensch
CHAPTER 3: Party organisations and resources: Membership, funding and staffing - Gary Johns
CHAPTER 4: Cartel parties and election campaigning in Australia - Ian Ward
CHAPTER 5: The cartel parties model and electoral barriers - Rodney Smith and John O’Mahony
CHAPTER 6: Ideological convergence between the major parties and the representation gap in Australian politics - Ian Marsh
CHAPTER 7: The Nationals and the Democrats: Cracks and chips in the cartel? - John Warhurst
CHAPTER 8: The Australian Greens: Challengers to the cartel - Ariadne Vromen and Nick Turnbull
CHAPTER 9: The Australian party system, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and the party cartelisation thesis - Murray Goot
CHAPTER 10: New Zealand's multi-party system: Consolidation of the cartel model under proportional representation - Raymond Miller

"Interesting chapters on the Nationals and the Democrats, and on the Greens and Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, broaden the coverage beyond the two major parties. Consideration of the Greens, in particular, shows that, even if the major parties do try to operate as cartels, they are not effective in practice in blocking new entrants that have new, more innovative and more inclusive ways of working.

A concluding chapter on the New Zealand experience also shows how 'non-cartel' parties can play the role of 'circuit breakers' or 'substitute suppliers of policy.' One obvious lesson there is that a system of proportional representation helps in loosening the grip of the big players on the political process

By focusing on the institutional practices of political parties that are fundamental for the future of democracy, the book provides a useful contrast to the superficial media focus on party leadership rivalries."

-- Journal of Australian Political Economy