Hugh Heclo, "Issue Networks and the Executive Establishment"

Most political parties operate on several territorial levels, but we have only limited theoretical understanding of multi-level party dynamics. This article presents a delegation framework for stud...

Multi-Level Relations in Political Parties A Delegation Approach

The article develops a conceptual framework for the analysis of political careers in multi-level systems. Political careers are seen as being shaped by the interplay of individual ambition and the institutional structure of opportunities. Under the conditions of political professionalism, career decisions are made comparing the costs and benefits of attaining the various offices given in a certain polity. I argue that the availability, accessibility, and attractiveness of offices provide the most important clues for career-planning. The article develops a conceptual framework for the analysis of political careers in multi-level systems. Political careers are seen as being shaped by the interplay of individual ambition and the institutional structure of opportunities. Under the conditions of political professionalism, career decisions are made comparing the costs and benefits of attaining the various offices given in a certain polity. I argue that the availability, accessibility, and attractiveness of offi...

Individual Ambition and Institutional Opportunity: A Conceptual Approach to Political Careers in Multi-level Systems

One aim of devolution in Scotland was to create a political class more representative of the country as a whole. In practice devolution has accelerated trends towards a professional background in Scottish representatives. There has been a significant increase in representativeness by gender; but not by social or occupational background. A professional Scottish political class is in the making. Devolution has not had a significant effect on the civil service in Scotland. Mobility between Edinburgh and London and between the public and private sectors was always low and Scottish civil servants tended to be less likely to gain a private or Oxbridge education. The Scottish Parliament gains in gender representation are not mirrored within the civil service.

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A New Elite? Politicians and Civil Servants in Scotland after Devolution

Research on parliamentary careers has paid little attention to variations in pre-parliamentary career patterns and their value in explaining legislators’ parliamentary success Using sequence and cluster analysis, this article identifies typical career tracks taken by Party Animals, Local Heroes, Late Bloomers, Land Legislators, High-Flyers and Career Changers based on a comprehensive dataset of German parliamentarians’ biographies (1998–2014) The analysis confirms the role of the party as the primary career facilitator before and within parliament Nonetheless both Career Changers and High-Flyers climb the greasy pole all the way to the national parliament without much service to the party The former type, however, suffers from a lack of networks and experience, which is reflected in the limited career success within parliament This article demonstrates that the use of sequence analysis on career paths offers a promising approach in distinguishing and explaining the opportunities, choices and 

Party animals, career changers and other pathways into parliament

In the sparse literature on political careers in federal systems, regional positions are often seen as mere stepping stones on the way to federal office. But are they really? The recent professionalization of state politics in federal systems and the regionalization of former unitary states point to the strengthening of the regional level as a career arena in its own right. Could this lead to the emergence of a regional political class with a set of career interests distinct from those of national politicians? This article takes a first, comparative look at current patterns of career movements between regional and national parliaments in a wide range of federal and newly regionalized systems. The study shows that, contrary to general belief, the number of deputies actually moving from the regional to federal level is generally relatively low. While some cases show fairly integrated career structures, others exhibit a pattern of career development in which state or regional office functions as the main focus of political careers. The territorial structure of the political class is dependent upon a whole range of social, cultural and institutional factors. At the same time, it is also an important factor in the mechanics and institutional development of each federal system in question.

Moving up, moving down: Political careers across territorial levels

Political careers in modern democracies have been affected by important territorial reorganisations of the political system. In the newly emerging multi-level systems long-established career patterns are dissolving and new patterns are emerging. For a number of reasons these changes have not yet been adequately mapped and explained. In this introduction we are arguing for a dynamic, careers oriented approach to supersede the traditional institution-centred analysis. The aim of this special issue – and of further research in this field – is to reveal the existing links between political careers and the complex institutional opportunity structures provided by each political system. While changing institutions affect career pathways, changing career patterns, in turn, are bound to have important repercussions for the institutional and territorial order of political systems in general.

Introduction: Political Careers in Multi-level Systems

Die politische Karriere unterscheidet sich von anderen beruflichen Karrieren in vielerlei Hinsicht, vor allem aber durch ein besonderes Element der Unsicherheit — die demokratische Anbindung an den Wahlerwillen (und damit die Moglichkeit der Wahlniederlage und der Abwahl). Damit ist die Verfolgung einer bruchlosen, gradlinigen Karriere grundsatzlich starker erschwert als in anderen Berufen. Dies macht besondere Strategien des Zugangs und Verbleibs im politischen Beruf, also eine Karrierepolitik, erforderlich. In diesem Artikel geht es um Politikerkarrieren und die daraus zu rekonstruierenden Elemente individueller Karrierepolitik in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland. Grundlage der empirischen Analyse ist eine auf den aktuellen Handbuchern der 16 deutschen Landtage basierende Datenbank zu den politischen Biografien aller knapp 2000 deutschen Landtagsabgeordneten. Besonders interessant sind einerseits die Amtersukzession und andererseits die Amterkumulation. Hier lassen sich vier verschiedene Strategien der Karrierepolitik unterscheiden: eine kommunalpolitische, eine parteipolitische, eine verbandspolitische Strategie und eine relativ neue, die uber Mitarbeiterpositionen verlauft. Mit der Untersuchung dieser Zusammenhange will die Analyse insgesamt zu einem besseren Verstandnis des Verhaltnisses zwischen politischen Karrieren und Karrierepolitik beitragen.

Die Bekämpfung der Unsicherheit: Politikerkarrieren und Karrierepolitik in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland

This article looks at political career patterns in Germany with a focus on the state level. After all, state legislators are a far more representative group of professional politicians in Germany than members of the federal parliament. Furthermore, by looking at pathways to the state legislatures, strategies to remain there (including office accumulation) and options of career advancement from a state mandate to other positions the authors substitute a dynamic career perspective for a mainly institution-centered one. The main finding of the article is contra-intuitive: Despite an institutional structure that allows for high levels of permeability between different territorial levels of government in Germany, there is actually very limited movement. The high degree of professionalization of state politics, a certain regionalization of the party system and some other factors seem to have turned state politics into a career arena in its own right.

German Political Careers: The State Level as an Arena in its Own Right?

1. The quest for a regional political class 2. Regionalism, regionalisation and regional institutions in Catalonia and Scotland: setting the stage for a regional political class 3. Political careers: the making of a regional political class in itself 4. (Re)making political institutions: a regional political class for itself 5. Conclusion: traces of a regional political class in Catalonia and Scotland Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 References

Klaus Stolz

Papers

Moving up, moving down: Political careers across territorial levels

Introduction: Political Careers in Multi-level Systems

Die Bekämpfung der Unsicherheit: Politikerkarrieren und Karrierepolitik in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland

German Political Careers: The State Level as an Arena in its Own Right?

Towards a regional political class?: Professional politicians and regional institutions in Catalonia and Scotland