Semi-Presidentialism Outside Europe: A Comparative Study / Edition 1

by Robert Elgie, Sophia Moestrup

Overview

This is the first academic study of the impact of semi-presidentialism in emerging democracies outside of Europe.

Semi-presidentialism is where there is both a directly-elected fixed-term president and a prime minister who is responsible to the legislature. For the most part, semi-presidentialism is seen as being a risky choice for new democracies because it can create potentially destabilizing competition between the president and prime minister. And yet, there are now more than fifty semi-presidential countries in the world. Moreover, many of these countries are in Africa, the former Soviet Union and Asia, often in places where democracy has yet to establish a firm foundation.

This study begins with a chapter that discusses the advantages and disadvantages of semi-presidentialism and provides the theoretical framework for a wide-ranging series of country chapters presented in the second part of the book. Written by country/area specialists, the case studies highlight the political processes at work in young semi-presidential democracies.

Semi-Presidentialism Outside Europe will appeal to those researching and studying in the fields of comparative politics, development and democracy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415380478
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	06/07/2007
Series:	Routledge Research in Comparative Politics , #19
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Robert Elgie, Sophia Moestrup

Table of Contents

1. What Is Semi-Presidentialism and Where is it Found? Robert Elgie 2. The Advantages and Disadvantages of Semi-Presidentialism: A West European Perspective Gianfranco Pasquino 3. Semi-Presidentialism in Young Democracies - Help or Hindrance? Sophia Moestrup 4. Semi-Presidentialism in a Post-Communist Context François Frison-Roche 5. Semi-Presidentialism in a Francophone Context Gérard Conac 6. Semi-Presidentialism in Madagascar Charles Cadoux 7. Semi-Presidentialism in Niger: Gridlock and Democratic Breakdown - Learning From Past Mistakes Sophia Moestrup 8. Semi-Presidentialism and the Preservation of Ambiguity in Post-War Mozambique Carrie Manning 9. Semi-Presidentialism in Guinea Bissau: The Lesser of Two Evils? Elisabete Azevedo and Lia Nijzink 10. Eurasian Semi-Presidentialism: The Development of Kyrgyzstan's Model of Government Eugene Huskey 11. Semi-Presidentialism in Mongolia: Trade-Offs Between Stability and Governance Sophia Moestrup and Gombosurengiin Ganzorig 12. Semi-Presidentialism - Easy to Choose, Difficult to Operate: The Case of Taiwan Yu-Shan Wu 13. Timor-Leste: Semi-Presidentialism and the Democratic Transition in a New, Small State Dennis Shoesmith 14. The Choice of Semi-Presidentialism and its Consequences Sophia Moestrup