An examination of cartel party model and its critiques

This study aims to examine the essential characteristics of the cartel party model, which can be regarded as the last link of the political party evolution chain, and critiques leveled at the model. As the study is descriptive, a dynamic literature review is conducted. The similarities and differences of the cartel party model with other types are provided by using historical comparison and comparative methods. The cartel parties, which were first coined as a new model by Katz and Mair in 1995, are mainly characterized by the limitation of competition, dependence on public resources and ability to engage with the state. The cartel party model has been criticized in many ways since it was introduced as a new model. Koole, Detterbeck, Hopkin and Kitschelt have criticized the idea that cartel party can be accepted as a new model in terms of competitiveness, access to public resources and organizational level features. In this study, critiques against the cartel party model are examined and discussed within the framework of the following five main topics. Critiques of the conceptualization of the cartel party are: useless to define it as a new model, the definition of the concept is not clear and the cartel alike characteristics of the parties before the term is revealed are evident. Competitiveness-based criticisms are: increasing vote mobilization, contradictions regarding the exclusion of new parties, no or less competition between parties cannot be explained solely by cartel arguments. Critiques against cartel party on the basis of access to public resources are: the equal utilization of all parties from the public communication sources, loss of monopoly of public communication tools as a result of diversification of the means of mass communication, creation of equality between public financial assistance and the inadequacy of public resources for parties. Criticisms of cartel parties on the basis of civil society-states and parties are: dealing with relations in a static framework, causing different reactions of rapprochement between states and parties, contradiction of empirical arguments with voter dissatisfaction argument and creating the model without a valid economical-political basis. Criticisms at the organizational level are: not the stratarchy but the validity of the conditions of federalization are valid, the failure of the parties in terms of breaking its ties with its members and the unstable structure of the staratarchic organization. This study aims to address the gap in the Turkish written scholarly literature by providing an examination of the cartel party model and its critiques. The main argument raised in this study is that, given the criticisms of the cartel party model, the model has a significant contribution to the scholarly literature on political parties but with some aspects to be improved.