Party Candidate Selection before and after the Change of Ruling Parties: A Study of the 2005 and 2009 Local Executive Elections in Taiwan

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Main author: Fell, Dafydd
Other authors: Sullivan, Jonathan
Sapir, Eliyahu
Format: Journal Article           
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id eprints-17883
recordtype eprints
institution SOAS, University of London
collection SOAS Research Online
language English
language_search English
topic JQ Political institutions (Asia, Africa, Australia)
description This study examines how Taiwan’s parties conducted candidate selection in the 2005 and 2009 local executive elections and the consequences of these processes. It has adopted standard methods for measuring candidate selection and applied them to Taiwanese parties. It shows that, although both major parties employed very similar inclusive nomination methods in 2005, they diverged four years later, with the Democratic Progressive Party using a highly centralized candidate selection mechanism. We challenge the assumption that primaries undermine election campaigns and instead argue that, when the party allows the formal nomination process to take place, its candidates gain legitimacy and perform well. In general, primaries appear to promote local party unity and help to avoid the rise of rebel candidates. Nomination timing appears to have an effect on electoral outcomes in our sample cases, a finding that has not been addressed in the existing literature.
format Journal Article
author Fell, Dafydd
author_facet Fell, Dafydd
Sullivan, Jonathan
Sapir, Eliyahu
authorStr Fell, Dafydd
author_letter Fell, Dafydd
author2 Sullivan, Jonathan
Sapir, Eliyahu
author2Str Sullivan, Jonathan
Sapir, Eliyahu
title Party Candidate Selection before and after the Change of Ruling Parties: A Study of the 2005 and 2009 Local Executive Elections in Taiwan
publisher Taiwan Foundation for Democracy
publishDate 2013
url https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/17883/

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