Voter perceptions of parties’ left–right positions: The role of party strategies

Left–right semantics help voters simplify the complex political reality as they reduce party views on a variety of issues to a single dimension. Less studied, however, is the question of how voters arrive at parties’ left–right positions and how parties can influence voter perceptions. In this article, I demonstrate that the party can shape the voter’s understanding of the content of its left–right ideology by using three strategies: avoidance, ambivalence, or ambiguity. Specifically, the party may avoid or de-emphasize, embrace a conflicting position, or becloud its position on the controversial issue; by so doing, it induces voters to place less weight on this issue when perceiving the party’s left–right position. The empirical analysis connects voter and party data from 21 European democracies in the period 1996–2014 and finds empirical support for the effectiveness of these strategies. In particular, the study finds robust empirical evidence that strategic avoidance, ambivalence, and ambiguity strongly moderate the association between the party’s perceived ideological brand and its underlying issue content.     

The 2019 General Election in Northern Ireland: the Rise of the Centre Ground?

The experience of the 2019 general election in Northern Ireland took a very different course to that of the rest of the UK and, indeed, to the pattern of electoral politics typical of the region. Coming after almost three years with no functioning devolved government, combined with intense disagreement and uncertainty about Brexit, voters were ready to give a message to the two largest parties. Both Sinn Féin and the DUP suffered losses in the election, with the headline outcome being that unionism no longer holds the majority of seats for Northern Ireland in Westminster. More generally, there was a swing from both sides towards centre ground voting, which brought significant gains for the Alliance Party and the SDLP. This article summarises the reasons for this broad trend, focussing on the conditions and electoral pacts which brought it about. It also considers what it might mean for the prospects for Irish unification, noting that a referendum on unification will only be passed by attracting votes from those who tend to see themselves as neither unionist or nationalist.     

新时代提升党员干部政治能力问题研究--基于安徽省的调查与思考

政治能力是新时代党员干部第一位的能力。当前党员干部政治能力建设中还存在着政治敏锐性不高、政治定力不足、政治担当不够、政治执行力不强等问题,究其原因,既有主观方面的因素,也有客观方面的因素。因此,新时代提升党员干部政治能力,必须从加强党的长期执政能力建设出发,从党员干部个人和党组织主客观两个方面切入,既靠党员干部自身努力内外兼修提升政治能力,也要靠组织培养,充分发挥党组织政治功能。     

How to share and utilise expertise in a police forensic department through externalisation and mutualisation

The technique of fire investigation is a forensic domain in which expertise and analogies play a central role. To learn how fire investigators use these analogies to support their work, we conducted an ethnographic study in a Swiss forensic police department. To propose a suitable knowledge-management strategy, we also evaluated the knowledge conservation and sharing within the department. Our results highlighted that actionable knowledge is registered mainly in the investigators’ memories of a few, very experienced, individuals. Without experience with fire-incident investigations, an agent generally requires help from a more experienced colleague, who will then use his memory to find a similar case, which can contribute to the solution of the ongoing one. The research also established that knowledge is exchanged orally during on-site investigations and that knowledge receivers are generally those who are present on the scene. Using these findings, we suggest building a case library to support the externalisation and sharing of knowledge.     

全面从严治党背景下的农村基层党组织建设——基于陕西省延安市索洛湾村的调研

加强农村基层党组织建设是坚持和加强党对农村工作全面领导的必然要求,是巩固基层政权的迫切需要,是巩固党在农村执政基础的应然选择。但是,部分农村基层党组织软弱涣散,党员结构不平衡,在党意识不强,农村干部本领恐慌,管理制度、监督机制不健全。需要通过选优配强带头人,提升党员队伍素质,增强服务效能,提升乡村治理能力,落实主体责任等路径,推动农村基层党组织全面进步、全面过硬,促进全面从严治在农村落地生根。     

足迹研判工作模式的研究探讨

为高效发挥足迹研判工作的作用,笔者对足迹研判工作模式进行了思考。对上海市、长沙市等全国先进地区进行了调查、分析,也对先进经验推广存在的困难进行了讨论,指出其困难在于领导重视和理念两个方面。最后,笔者提出了一套更适于推广的战斗小组工作模式,并对该模式中各步骤的耗时和重要性进行了评估,阐述了该模式在人力、财力、物力投入缺乏情况下的优势,旨在对足迹研判工作的推动有所裨益。     

债权形式主义下物权行为有限存在之三维分析及立法建构

民法学界关于物权行为的讨论并未系统、深入,从事实、规范、价值三维角度分析债权形式主义下 应有物权行为的有限存在空间,且和债权行为一样均可单独引发物权变动,但不存在独立性与无 因性问题,并提出了立法建构模式。     

大治安格局的理念与全新的工作方式

大治安格局是以指挥中心为龙头,以社区警务建设为基础,以强化社会控制为手段,以公安科技建设为保障,各警种和社会力量广泛参与,采取专群结合,打防结合,动静结合,点线面结合,人防、物防、技防等方式方法,形成集预防、发现、打击犯罪等功能于一体的社会治安防控的大治安格局。     

廉政文化和先进家庭文化契合的长效机制探讨

反腐倡廉,理论指导和观念创新先行。追求廉政文化与先进家庭文化的契合,必须创新载体,采用多种途径;同时移植、借鉴国外在反腐败方面的有益经验,多元联动、综合整治,系统推进,建立长效机制,为构建和谐社会提供良好的政务、法制、体制环境与保障。     

试论山区县市公安基层基础工作

洪江市公安局在强化公安基层工作中,结合山区特点,坚持以“苏州”、“杭州”会议精神为指导,围绕派出所“防范、管理、打击、服务”这一基本职能,狠抓思想认识提高。狠抓社区警务规范建设,狠抓治安联防队伍等群防群治建设,狠抓村级警务站建设,确保了警务前移、警务下沉,着力开创派出所新型警务运行机制的局面,努力实现警民共刨安全文明社区。