Overview
- Explains why elected political parties prefer to choose non-partisan outsiders for certain roles rather than partisan insiders
- Offers a thorough collection of quantitative data on Western, Central and Eastern European countries
- Provides a historical overview from 1945 to the present day
Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Political Leadership (PSPL)
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Table of contents (10 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
Keywords
- Technocratic ministers in Europe
- European technocrats
- political leadership in Europe
- political leadership in European democracies
- Governance in Europe
- leadership and political experience
- election of experts to political office
- non-partisan ministers in France
- non-partisan ministers in Sweden
- non-partisan ministers in Italy
- non-partisan ministers in Portugal
- non-partisan ministers in Spain
- non-partisan ministers in Central Eastern Europe
- non-partisan ministers in Balkan countries
- non-partisan ministers in Hungary
- non-partisan ministers in Romania
- non-partisan ministers in Turkey
- democracy
About this book
This book provides an in-depth analysis of the ‘technocratic shift’ in ministerial recruitment, measuring its extent and variations over time in fourteen European countries. It addresses the question: who governs in European democratic regimes? Just a few decades ago, the answer would have been straightforward: party-men and (fewer) party-women. More recently, however, and in varying degrees across Europe, a greater proportion of non-politicians or experts have been recruited to government, as exemplified by the 2017 election of Emmanuel Macron to the French Presidency. These experts, frequently labelled “technocrats”, increasingly occupy key executive positions and have emerged as powerful actors in the decision-making process. This edited collection explores the contemporary debates surrounding the relationship between technocracy, democracy and political leadership, and will appeal to scholars and advanced students interested in these fields.
Reviews
“In the world of governing, parties are thought to be supreme. But in the complex modern political environment, ideology is shaded by competence and sometime expertise is needed. This superb collection of articles provides an important comparison of the use of technocratic ministers in Europe. Combining detailed historical empirical analysis and theoretical sophistication, it is a major contribution to the study of political elites at the ministerial level.” (Professor Keith Dowding, Australian National University, Australia)
Editors and Affiliations
About the editors
António Costa Pinto is Research Professor at the Institute of Social Sciences, University of Lisbon, Portugal. He has published on authoritarianism, political elites, democratization and transitional justice. He co-edited Who Governs Southern Europe? Regime Change and Ministerial Recruitment, 1850-2000 (2003; first reprint, 2012) and Dealing with the Legacy of Authoritarianism: The “Politics of the Past” in Southern European Democracies (2013) (with L. Morlino).
Maurizio Cotta is Professor of Political Science at the University of Siena, Italy. His research interests include the comparative study of political elites, political institutions and Italian politics. He has co-edited and co-authored many books, namely Parliamentary Representatives in Europe (2000), Democratic Representation: Diversity, Change and Convergence (2007), and Political Institutions of Italy (2007) (with L. Verzichelli).
Pedro Tavares de Almeidais Professor of Political Science at NOVA University of Lisbon, Portugal. His research interests focus on elite recruitment, elections and political representation. He has co-edited Who Governs Southern Europe? Regime Change and Ministerial Recruitment, 1850-2000 (2003; first reprint, 2012), Perspectives of National Elites on European Citizenship (2012) and The Politics of Representation: Elections and Parliamentarism in Portugal and Spain, 1875-1926 (2017).
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Technocratic Ministers and Political Leadership in European Democracies
Editors: António Costa Pinto, Maurizio Cotta, Pedro Tavares de Almeida
Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Political Leadership
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62313-9
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-62312-2Published: 02 October 2017
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-87288-9Published: 26 August 2018
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-62313-9Published: 12 September 2017
Series ISSN: 2947-5821
Series E-ISSN: 2947-583X
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XIV, 295
Number of Illustrations: 2 b/w illustrations, 10 illustrations in colour
Topics: Political Leadership, European Politics, Comparative Politics, Democracy