How Power Changes Hands Transition and Succession in Government [Hardcover]

How can we strengthen the capacity of governments and parties to manage arrivals and departures at the top? Democracy requires reliable processes for the transfer of power from one generation of leaders to the next. This book introduces new analytical frameworks and presents the latest empirical evidence from comparative political research.Power Transitions and Leadership Successions in Government; P.'t Hart & J.Uhr PART I: UNDERSTANDING TRANSITIONS Ruling Elite Transitions in Australia and the United States; J.Higley & J.Pakulski Managers or Messiahs? Prime Ministerial Leadership and the Transition to Government; J.Walter Establishing Prime Ministerial Leadership Style in Opposition; W.Errington Bicameralism and the Dynamics of Contested Transitions; J.Uhr , S.Bach & L.Massicotte Westminster Norms and Caretaker Conventions: Australian and New Zealand Transition Debates; M.Simms PART II: UNDERSTANDING SUCCESSIONS Seeking and Keeping the Hot Seat: a Comparative Analysis of Party Leader Successions; M.Laing & P.'t Hart Holding Party Leaders to Account: the Westminster Cases; W.Cross & A.Blais The Firing Line: When and Why do Prime Ministers Fire Ministerial Colleagues?; K.Dowding & E.McLeay Power Consolidation in Leadership Change Contexts: a Social Identity Perspective; E.Subaai? & K.J.Reynolds Building Trust at the Beginning of a New Leadership Role: the Role of Learning and Collaboration; P.Atkins 'The Tideless Pond that Seemed Waiting for Me': the Afterlife of Australian Prime Ministers; P.Strangio How Power Changes Hands: Concluding Reflections; P.'t Hart & J.Uhr

The transfer of power is fundamental to the proper functioning of our political and administrative institutions. Yet, students of government and practitioners have little in the way of literature to guide their understanding of how power changes hands. This book fills a void in a comprehensive and insightful fashion. It brings a theoretical, empirical and comparatlÁ