Strength through Weakness: State Executive Power and Federal Reform in Austria

Due to the absence of a strong constitutional veto player, comparative research uses to classify Austria as country with weak federal structures, occasionally even as a “federation without federalism”. From an institutional perspective, the assessment is definitely correct, in particular with regard to the nearly insignificant status of the second chamber Bundesrat. Apart from constitutional provisions, however, there are informal forces at work in decision‐making processes. Our thesis is that any approach ignoring the fact that the nominal constitution is paralleled by a real one falls short. Instead, we focus on the Conference of State Governors which, though not established by law, is a strong player in Austria's multi‐layered system qualifying the picture of “weak” federalism. The paper gives on overview of origin and function of the conference and its ambivalent role in making up for the shortcomings of the federal structures. Taking recent attempts of reorganizing fiscal equalization between states and federation as an example, the need of reforming the allocation of rights and duties between the different levels and, at the same time, the obstacles blocking the reform is outlined and analyzed.     

The Christians of Palestine: Strength,Vulnerability, and Self-restraint within a Multi-sectarian Community

Based on fieldwork in the Bethlehem area, this article uses the issue of internal land disputes as a starting point to describe a series of developments that have served to weaken the Christian communities in Palestine, and to identify some dilemmas they face, as Palestinians and as members of a minority community in Palestine. The article describes a situation where a weak and dysfunctional legal system under the Palestinian Authority (PA) has left Palestinians dependent on family and community networks for security and protection. Due to a history of emigration, combined with distinct social and demographic characteristics, Christian Palestinians find themselves in a position of structural vulnerability, subject to land theft and other criminal violation. Cautious about igniting sectarian divisions, Christian community leaders have a hard time addressing these issues within a public discourse. Fearful of harming Palestinian national interests, they are also reluctant to utilize international contacts and seek external support to secure their own rights and interests in Palestine. The article argues that this reflects both a commitment to an ethos of national unity among Christian Palestinians, and an acute awareness of the impact of ‘framing’ in preserving sectarian harmony.     

Measuring Party Strength: A New Systematic Framework Applied to the Case of German Parties, 1991–2013

An appropriate quantitative measurement of party strength is an essential precondition to any further qualitative assessment of partisan influence. The existing literature offers a number of individual indicators but fails to integrate them into a coherent systematic framework. This article fills that gap by proposing a new multi-dimensional and multi-level framework model to operationalise and measure party strength. The soundness of the approach is tested on the case of the evolution of German parties between 1991 and 2013.