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Erik Lundberg
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Book chapter

Partimedlemmar

2025Karlsson, M., & Lundberg, E.I Hagevi, M. (red.), Partier och partisystem. Lund: Studentlitteratur

What is this study about?

The chapter examines the role of party members in political parties and in representative democracy. It describes who becomes a party member, why people choose to join, and what functions members fulfill within the parties. Particular attention is paid to how membership has changed over time and what the declining number of party members means for the relationship between citizens and political parties.

What did we find?

The parties' membership bases have declined sharply in recent decades, but members still have important functions. They participate in the parties' internal activities, contribute to election campaigns and policy development, and constitute an important recruitment base for political positions. The chapter also shows how the parties have adapted to fewer members and how the forms of the relationship between parties and citizens are changing.

Why does it matter?

Political parties are central institutions of representative democracy, but their ability to link citizens and political decision-makers has historically been closely tied to the membership organization. As fewer people are party members, questions about political representation, recruitment, internal party democracy and the parties' rootedness in society are therefore brought to the fore. Understanding the change in party membership is thus important for understanding how representative democracy's way of organizing citizens' participation is changing.

Citation

Karlsson, M., & Lundberg, E. (2025) Partimedlemmar. I Hagevi, M. (red.), Partier och partisystem. Lund: Studentlitteratur

Research area

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