Not to be confused withPatriarchy.
Particracy or Rule of the Parties is a government system in which political power is concentrated within the bureaucratic machines of political parties. The term is usually a pejorative against representative democracies in which the representatives are not seen as actually representing their constituents but rather the interests of the political parties they belong to.
Although advocacy for a particracy could be seen as being something one could unironically advocate for, in the form of a one-party state (vanguardism).
Conceptions
One-Party States
One way in which particracy has been historically implemented is in the form of a One-Party State. This is also the only form of particracy that is likely to be sincerely advocated for. One-party states are states governed by one major political party, and all other parties are either banned or hold little power. While one-party states have been led by parties of many different ideologies, some of the most common examples are countries led by Marxist-Leninist (such as the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union,
the Communist Party of China, and the
Communist Party of Cuba),
Ba'athist or
fascist (such as the
Nazi Party of Germany, the
National Fascist Party of Italy, and the
Fatherland Front Party of Austria) parties.
Two-Party Systems
Another way in which particracy has been historically and still currently implemented is in the form of a Two-Party System. Two-party systems are systems where two parties (usually one broadly left-leaning and one broadly right-leaning) dominate the political landscape, with power shifting back and forth between both. While other parties often hold some seats in the legislature, they are unlikely to be a significant enough bloc, with coalition governments being rare. Countries like the United States are extreme examples where third party or independent representatives are almost non-existent in both the federal and state legislatures. This has resulted in both parties having different ideological factions in the hopes of somewhat increasing political diversity and having a more broad appeal. This is usually the result of the first-past-the-post voting system, where high amounts of tactical voting due to it being a plurality-based system will result in most people only voting for one of the two parties (otherwise known as Duverger's law), but this isn't necessarily the case; two-party systems or characteristics of a two-party system can also sometimes be found in other voting systems, including some proportional systems. Prominent examples of two-party systems are the US
Democratic/
Republican Party, the Canadian
Liberal/
Conservative Party, and the Australian
Liberal/
Labor Party (in the House of Representatives).
Dominant-Party System
A Dominant-Party System is when one party dominates politics for a long time. It can be seen as a weaker, informal version of the one-party state, however, the systems they operate in are still nominally democratic and the party can be replaced, but it is usually very hard. Examples include People's Action Party of Singapore,
Institutional Revolutionary Party of Mexico,
FIDESZ, and
Law and Justice Party.
Codominant-Party System
A Codominant-Party System is when the same several, usually two, parties dominate politics for a long time. It can be seen as a weaker, informal version of the two-party system, however, the systems they operate in are still nominally democratic and either party can be replaced, but it is usually very hard as the result of a still primarily first-past-the-post voting system, where high amounts of tactical voting due to it being a plurality-based system will result in most people only voting for one of the two parties (otherwise known as Duverger's law). Examples include the UK Conservative/
Labour Party, the Australian
Liberal/
Labor Party (in the Senate), the New Zealand
Labour/
National Party, the South Korean
People Power Party/
Democratic Party of Korea, the Taiwanese
Democratic Progressive Party/
Kuomintang, and the Spanish
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party/
People's Party.
Partitocrazia
How to Draw
- Draw a ball.
- Fill it with white.
- Draw the symbol shown on the flag below, which is a half ring alternating between green, red, yellow, blue and black.
- Draw in the eyes.
You're done!
Relations
Friends
Republicanism - Thanks for creating a platform for me!
Ingsoc - THE PARTY WOULD LIKE TO REMIND YOU-
Parliamentarianism - Your Westminster form especially is pretty based.
Marxism-Leninism - Exporting the one-party system around the world is based.
Authoritarian Democracy - That's more like it...
Frenemies
Democracy - You can be based sometimes but your direct democracy form is ultra cringe.
Helvetic Model - You still have parties and all, but what the hell is that "popular initiative" bullshit?
Enemies
Washingtonism - Haha 2 party system go GOP/DEM.
Absolute Monarchism - Why do you ban political parties most of the time?
Gaddafism - You banned parties and you think you're democratic.
Metaxism - This idiot banned his own party.
Lukashenkoism - Why does this non-party despot use the aesthetics of the one-party USSR? I have no idea.
Ochlocracy - Direct democracy just went mad.
Anarchism - You want no rule - cringe!
Post-Leftism - Yep, this is even more cringe.
Autonomism - He also hates parties and hangs out with him
sometimes.
Autarchy - Every person a state? What the heck?
Further Information
Wikipedia
Examples
Both modern and historical examples are included.
Parties of one-party states
Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party of Syria
Arab Socialist Union
Bulgarian Communist Party
Communist Party of China
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
Communist Party of Cuba
Communist Party of Kampuchea
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Communist Party of Vietnam
Democratic Constitutional Rally
FET y de las JONS
Gabonese Democratic Party
Hamas
Imperial Rule Assistance Association
Kenya African National Union
Kuomintang
(Before democratization)
Lao People's Revolutionary Party
League of Communists of Yugoslavia
Mongolian People's Party
MPLA
National Fascist Party of Italy
National Progressive Front of Iraq
National Revolutionary Movement for Development
National Socialist German Worker's Party
National Union
Polisario Front
Rastakhiz Party
Romanian Communist Party
Rwandan Patriotic Front
Socialist Unity Party of Germany
Worker's Party of Korea
Parties of dominant-party systems
African National Congress
Amanat
Bangladesh Awami League
Bharatiya Janata Party
Botswana Democratic Party
Cambodian People's Party
Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro
Fatah
FIDESZ
General People's Congress
Georgian Dream
Indian National Congress
(Until 2014)
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
Institutional Revolutionary Party of Mexico
Justice and Development Party
Justicialist Party
Kurdistan Democratic Party
Law and Justice Party
Liberal Democratic Party of Japan
National Democratic Party
National Liberation Front
(Until 2019)
National Party
National Renewal Alliance
National Resistance Movement
New Azerbaijan Party
Party of Regions
(Until 2014)
People's Action Party of Singapore
Rhodesian Front
Sandinista National Liberation Front
Serbian Progressive Party
Slovenian Democratic Party
United Malays National Organisation
(Until 2018)
United Russia
United Socialist Party of Venezuela
Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party
Parties of two-party systems
Conservative Party &
Labour Party
Democratic Party &
Republican Party
Liberal Party of Canada &
Conservative Party of Canada
Australian Labor Party &
Liberal-National Coalition
Labour Party &
National Party
People Power Party &
Democratic Party of Korea
Democratic Progressive Party &
Kuomintang
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party &
People's Party
Colombian Conservative Party &
Colombian Liberal Party
(1958-2002)
Concertación &
Alianza
(1989-2017)
Barisan Nasional &
Pakatan Rakyat
(2008-2018)